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Brussels, 24 September 1998 (ICFTU OnLine): Extending social protection to the informal sector, widening the range of risks covered, transparency and a greater role for trade unions are the demands Africa’s French-speaking trade unions have put forward, aimed both at saving social security from its endemic crisis caused by the mishandling of the system by the State and at protecting it from the threat of privatisation mooted in some sectors. On the financial side, the trade unions believe that the system should look to the expanding informal sector to increase the number of contributors, and show it some solidarity.

Meeting from September 15 to 17 in Abidjan under the auspices of the ICFTU’s African Regional Organisation (AFRO), trade union leaders from 19 French-speaking African countries described the disastrous social security situation in their countries (1). The system excludes the informal sector entirely and on average only covers about 10 per cent of these countries’ working populations. Benefits are usually limited to family allowances and retirement pensions. Social security does not usually extend to unemployment, maternity cover or health care. There are serious delays in paying out benefits and the misappropriation of social security funds is common in many countries.

"Social security funds are often used by political leaders for unjustified public expenditure and/or personal ends" protested the AFRO trade unionists, giving examples to illustrate their point. In one country social security funds have been used to finance the building of an airport and in another a hospital, at inflated cost.

With widespread unemployment in most countries of sub-Saharan Africa, caused mainly by structural adjustment programmes, and the continuing rural exodus, traditional forms of solidarity can no longer meet, or disguise, this crying need.

Trade unions are opposed to the privatisation of these crumbling social security systems, advocated by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in the framework of structural adjustment programmes. Rather, the unions are urging the State to shoulder its responsibility as regulator of the social security system, while allowing the social partners to take care of the management of social security funds.

AFRO also defends the pay as you go system (whereby benefits are financed by the contributions of working people) and rejects the "individual capitalisation" model seemingly favoured by the international financial institutions.

The trade unions are also demanding that the directors of the social security funds be appointed by the social partners, and that the unions play a greater role on the boards of directors, as well as in the training of staff. For their part, the unions have promised to set up a specific training programme open to trade union specialists in French-speaking Africa in order to improve their skills in the management and internal and external control of social security funds.

"Social protection must be based on the principle of equity and social justice, taking into account the need to provide general protection for all workers" insists the AFRO.

The ICFTU’s regional organisation also stressed the need to recognise women’s rights to social protection in full "particularly when they are the head of a single parent family". Organised in cooperation with the General Workers’ Union of the Ivory Coast, the Abidjan was a first for AFRO, which in the future will be stepping up its activities in the field of social protection. In Abidjan, the trade unionists expressed their grievances to the President of the Republic, Henri Konan Bedié, who received an AFRO delegation led by AFRO President Madia Diop (Senegal) and its General Secretary, Andrew Kailembo. The AFRO delegation also had an opportunity to make closer contact with Ivory Coast’s informal sector, as the drivers of the "woros-woros" (the public taxis) "gbakas" (minibuses) and "metre taxis" were on strike in protest at the death of one of their colleagues, shot dead by the police during a spot check.

(1) The Abidjan conference prepared a report on "The social security situation in Africa: principles, problems and outlook" which gives a full picture of the situation in Africa. The report is available on request (in French only) from AFRO.

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