On Thursday the 28th of September, the Peruvian National Ministry of Labour and Employment Promotion (MTPE)’s Impulsa Perú programme organized its first discussion on how the country can achieve SDG 8 – Decent work and Economic Growth – centred on “Employment and Sustainability for the 2030 Agenda.”
The discussion was opened with remarks from the Executive Coordinator of Impulsa Perú, Rossana Taquia, who celebrated the actions that the programme has promoted that are leading the country towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals in the two years since its inception.
In the first roundtable discussion, “Challenges and Opportunities of toward achieving SDG 8 in Peru by 2030,” the National Coordinator PAGE Perú, Miguel Angel Beretta began his presentation stating that “green growth is the key to sustainable development,” and sharing knowledge on the progress of each axis of work of the PAGE initiative. He reiterated that achieving the SDGs, particularly SDG 8 would require institutional support and commitment from the government, and finally, he stressed the government with the support of public, private and civil society sectors must create the sufficient conditions for people to access more dignified jobs while promoting the development of a sustainable economy.
National Coordinator PAGE Peru, Miguel Ángel Beretta
“PAGE has contributed in a number of ways; in particular, we have focused on developing a proposal for prospective green industries and conducting various studies with the Ministry of Labour and Employment Promotion to advance regulations on telework and, in general, on green jobs. It is important to consider that SDG 8 is a pillar for decent employment and the economy,” he concluded.
The Head of Ethics of Leadership, Ethics and Social Responsibility (CLERS) of the University of the Pacific (UP), Francois Vallaeys, presented the role of universities and civil society in achieving SDG 8. “The role of our university is to promote decent employment for graduates and teachers. From the Centre for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at UP, we have incubated business initiatives and strengthened the entrepreneurial ecosystem that contributes to the growth of the country and the well-being of society, and promoted the conditions for fair employment, “said Vallaeys.
One of the projects is NOMADES, a company that seeks to build community through products that shape Peruvian culture and to promote a “fair market” by eliminating brokers. Another highlighted project is Q’UMA, producers of organic chocolate and coffee through agro-ecology.
Mr. Vallaeys also pointed to the importance of the circular economy for disrupting the political and social agenda and sharing the economic, social and environmental benefits of production and consumption. In a circular economy, the waste from one business activity is used as an input for another.
Number of jobs required for the treatment of 10,000 tonnes of waste by type of treatment
This article has been adapted from the PAGE Peru website. To read the original, please click here, and to find out more about PAGE’s work in Peru please click here.