Up to 36,000 workers will benefit from the employability roundtable in La Guajira, government announces

The Ministry of Labor announced the installation of the employability table in La Guajira, an initiative that seeks to hire 36 thousand workers who are currently in the informal sector.

According to the Minister of Labor, Gloria Inés Ramírez Ríos, the employability roundtable in La Guajira recognizes the knowledge of the Wayúu community on issues related to tourism, handicrafts and fishing. In addition, she noted that “the central objective of the table will be the design of strategies for the development of policies that allow the creation of projects and tools to improve access to social protection through decent and dignified work”, assured the senior government official.

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The employability roundtable in La Guajira arose as one of the policies adopted by the national government during its visit, and within the framework of the Economic, Social and Ecological Emergency Decree in La Guajira that is currently in force.

At the meeting held with the Wayúu communities, the ministerial cabinet, the President of the Republic and the International Labor Organization (ILO), the entity that participated in the labor issues, a round table on social protection, employability and measures to combat informality was set up.

The installation was also attended by some entities of the department, trade unions, social organizations, academia and employers in the region.

Employability Roundtable in La Guajira

The Employability Roundtable in La Guajira will include compliance with Article 80 of the National Development Plan 2023 – 2026, which requires hiring at least 50% of personnel with local labor provided that workers have the skills required for the positions to be performed.

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To comply with this requirement, companies “must have corporate social responsibility programs and social protection guarantees”, said the Minister of Labor.

Minister Ramírez also explained that the Ministry of Labor will be permanently accompanied by the ILO to develop tools to help companies reach the entire department and prioritize the hiring of local labor.

Economic, social and ecological emergency decree

La Guajira has historically been one of Colombia’s departments with the most problems in terms of development and access to public services.

According to figures from the National Administrative Department of Statistics (DANE), as of May 2023, Riohacha and Valledupar are the capitals with the highest unemployment rates in Colombia. The unemployment rate in the capital of La Guajira is 14.9%, while that of the capital of Cesar is 14.3%.

According to the Ministry of Labor, these figures represent a very important challenge for labor in the department, especially in relation to training and employability.

On July 2, and with the purpose of advancing in guaranteeing the rights of the population, mostly belonging to the Wayúu ethnic group, the President of the Republic and all his ministers signed Decree 1085, by means of which the State of Economic, Social and Ecological Emergency in La Guajira came into effect.

In total, 11 sectors were prioritized, including health, water and basic sanitation, prioritization of the use of water resources, the agricultural and rural sector, and the energy sector. With the decree and the actions that are being advanced, it is expected to reduce hunger and poverty in the north of the country.

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