Pakistan ratifies three ILO pacts for workers

E-Paper | May 02, 2026

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ISLAMABAD: In a significant move, Pakistan has ratified three International Labour Organisation (ILO) instruments aimed at enhancing workers’ rights and protections while supporting evidence-based policy formulation to promote decent work.

The instruments of ratification for the Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930, the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC), 2006 (as amended), and the Labour Statistics Convention, 1985 (No. 160) were handed over by Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development Chaudhry Salik Hussain to ILO Director General Gilbert F. Houngbo during the annual session of the ILO Governing Body in Geneva on Thursday.

The Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 supplements the Forced Labour Convention which Pakistan ratified in 1957. It reinforces the global fight against all forms of forced labour, including human trafficking and slavery-like practices.

The ratification of the protocol affirms Pakistan’s commitment to eradicating forced labour, aligning its efforts with human rights principles and the Sustainable Development Goal 8 on decent work.

Published in Dawn, March 15th, 2025

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Amin Ahmed is an Islamabad-based correspondent for Dawn with nearly two decades of experience in the field. He reports on socio-economic development, agriculture, and privatisation, as well as parliamentary committees.

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