Minister of Social Affairs Issam Lahmar participated in the sixteenth session of the Committee for Social Development in Algiers on Monday June 23, 2025 , at the invitation of the Algerian Minister of National Solidarity, Family, and Women’s Affairs and the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA).
The Minister of Social Affairs will also participate in the fourth Arab Forum for Equality of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), on Tuesday, June 24 and Wednesday, June 25, 2025, in Algiers. This forum is organized by ESCWA in partnership with the Algerian Ministry of National Solidarity, Family, and Women’s Affairs. The Minister of Social Affairs highlighted the most important social reforms undertaken by Tunisia, which are primarily based on the principle of true social justice, adopting a socio-economic approach aimed at promoting autonomy and wealth creation. He also highlighted the ban on subcontracting, the regulation of employment contracts, the proposed unemployment insurance fund, and the establishment of a social protection system for female agricultural workers.
 In the same context, Issam l’Ahmar explained that social protection is a fundamental option for Tunisia to guarantee income and health for all. He added that, within this framework, the concept of a guaranteed minimum wage has been transformed into a guaranteed living wage, and a maternity protection system has been established, in accordance with international standards. The agenda of the sixteenth session of the Committee for Social Development includes several topics, including follow-up to the implementation of the activities of the ESCWA work programme and the recommendations made by the Committee for Social Development at its fifteenth session (Cairo 2024). It also addresses the activities of the Intersessional Expert Working Group on Disability and the Expert Group on Social Protection Reform, as well as the most important issues related to reducing inequalities through social protection reform. The Fourth Arab Forum for Equality aims to continue the discussions initiated at previous forums and to involve stakeholders, including policymakers, relevant ministers, the private sector, experts, civil society organizations, and youth in the Arab region, in a dialogue that will lead to concrete solutions to address inequalities. This forum will also focus on the issue of inequalities in social protection and their impact on the most vulnerable groups, as well as ways to reform existing systems to make them more inclusive and egalitarian. It also aims to propose concrete policy solutions that can strengthen equality through more inclusive and sustainable social protection systems.
On Tuesday, the Minister of Social Affairs will deliver the Tunisian address at the second session, which will examine international experiences with social protection in the informal sector. (TAP)