An SA businessman who has served the International Labour Organization (ILO) in senior positions for more than a decade says improving the organisation’s governance and oversight capabilities is in the offing should he be elected as the first African to lead the body since its inception more than a century ago.
Prof Mthunzi Mdwaba, the immediate past vice-president of the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) to the ILO, a tripartite UN special agency dealing with social justice and setting international labour standards, said he thought long and hard before deciding to run for the director-general position.
His candidacy has been endorsed by the ANC-led government, the AU, the Sadc tripartite bloc (governments, trade unions and employers), Southern African Trade Union Co-ordinating Council (SATUCC), Cosatu, Federation of Unions of SA (Fedusa), and National Council of Trade Unions (Nactu), among others.
Mdwaba is CEO of Tzoro IBC, an investment, strategic advisory and business consultancy in Sandton, a former vice-chair of the ILO, chair of Productivity SA and the SA-Norwegian Association.
In 2017, he was the first African in the history of the IOE and the ILO to be the leader of a team representing more than 150 business organisations, including Business Unity SA (Busa), in more than 150 countries, with ore than 50-million companies employing about 400-million workers. The ILO turns 103 years in 2022.
In an interview with Business Day, the former council chair of the University of the Western Cape, and ex officio member of the Global Commission on the Future of Work, said not everything needed to change, when asked what changes he hoped to bring if elected.
“We simply need to consolidate and enhance in order to reposition the organisation to perform better and optimally. There are aspects of the ILO that work very well, namely, its special brand of social dialogue, tripartism, the international labour standards or conventions,” said Mdwaba.
“My opinion is that these elements deserve better monitoring and implementation. They also need to be lifted, highlighted, shared and popularised.”
There were other aspects that needed to be “tweaked, dusted off and implemented; and these can be dealt with via a concerted effort to have the ILO governing body improve its governance and oversight”.
He said a repositioned ILO will benefit African states and others from the developing world, through “increased trust, with demonstrable decisions predicated on the mandate received from our governors in the [governing body]”.
“It is my considered opinion that I have demonstrated when I was in my previous group leadership position that with a strong mandate, and I was blessed to have a cohesive group that always gave me 120% support, anything is possible,” said Mdwaba, who hails from Coville in the Eastern Cape but is based in Sandton, frequenting Geneva in Switzerland over the past 12 years.
“Governments, workers and employers from the Global South will benefit from being led by someone from a hugely disadvantaged background. This makes me a person who has sensitivity to differences and diversity, as well as understands that crossover appeal is important to heal others and allay fears for those who are not ready to go at the same speed as others.”
He said that at this point the ILO needed to lead by example in its posture to demonstrate said leadership to its members. Its own human resources and human capital approach must be exemplary, said Mdwaba.
“The ILO must also be very introspective of its resources, and must be conscious of its challenges, opportunities and remain relevant for it to have appeal, impact and contribute to sustainable social justice.”
The election of the new ILO director-general for a five-year term will be held on March 25 2022, with applications opening on July 1 and closing on October 1, followed by interviews and hearings from January 2022.
“There are 56 votes in the offing, split between governments (28), trade unions (14) and worker organisations (14). Voting takes place by secret ballot in the confines of the ILO governing body. A simple majority of 50% plus 1 is needed for one to become a director-general,” Mdwaba explained.
The designated director-general will start work on April 1 2022 for a six-month handover with the incumbent Guy Ryder, who officially steps down on September 30 2022. If elected, Mdwaba will assume office on October 1 2022.
“I have confidence in the team that works with me in the campaign that we have all that it takes to get over the line,” he said on Monday.
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