International conference and research project on Informal Economy, Vulnerabilities and Employment
February 9-10th 2012
Institute of socioeconomics, University of Geneva
The international conference organized by the Institute of Socioeconomics, in collaboration with the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Louvain-la-Neuve (Belgium) and the International Labour Organization, is concerned with the interactions between informal economy, vulnerabilities and employment. Most of the abundant literature about this economy is based on the implicit assumption that development proceeds by means of the growth in the formal modern economy. In the context of the Millennium Development Goals of the last decade, this assumption has been increasingly linked with the objective of poverty reduction. A new global consensus has developed around the fact that, for growth to be sustainable, inclusive and pro-poor, the environment must be conducive to the creation of productive employment and of quality employment. This emerging consensus has led large numbers of countries in recent years to devote greater attention to informal employment as if economic growth is not associated with a movement into better employment opportunities in the formal economy and an improvement in the conditions of employment in informal activities, then the impact of growth on poverty will be minimal. Nevertheless, informal economy is still studied through its place and its role in relation to the formal economy and the analysis of it is generally functional to the formal one.
Very few researches have been carried out about the identities and the inner logics developed by the huge amount of diverse initiatives in the informal economy and on the multidimensional vulnerabilities, high exposure to risk combined with low social protection coverage that affects most informal economy workers and units. Not only is this damaging to the well-being of these workers and their families but it also constitutes a severe constraint preventing households from increasing productivity and finding a route out of poverty. When confronted to the issues of poverty reduction, the implementation of decent working conditions and the construction of social protection mechanisms in developing and developed countries, a growing literature shows that we have to take into account the inner logics of informal activities in relation with multidimensional vulnerabilities. The conference will provide a unique opportunity to fill this gap by associating local and international competences in a resolutely multidisciplinary and multicultural approach.
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This conference benefits from the financial support from the General Founds of the University of Geneva , the Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences, and the Swiss Sociological Association.    |
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This conference is related with the NCCR LIVES.  |
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Practical information for the conference
Conference Papers (access protected, ask password to )