Training courses at the Peruvian Ministry of Labour

The SOCIEUXprogramme, the Social Protection European Union Expertise in Development Cooperation facility, with which the FIIAPP collaborates, organized a five-day training activity at the Peruvian Ministry of Labour and Employment (MTPE) in Lima on international standards for social security.

In the course of preparing the programming for these types of agreements, the Peruvian ministry identified a series of areas for improvement, particularly with regard to subject-area knowledge on the part of civil servants working in the institutions involved. In order to address these gaps, the MTPE asked the SOCIEUX programme to provide a training action for its employees.

The activity focused on what social protection is for migrant workers and the role played by the different legal levels applicable to social security: national, bilateral and multinational. Emphasis was placed on the issue of which guidelines to follow in the creation, negotiation and implementation of bilateral social security agreements, using examples of some agreements currently in force, such as the one between Spain and Peru, which served as a basis for detecting possible problems in their implementation.

The purpose of proper implementation of these types of agreements is to improve and expand the social coverage of migrant workers and their families, and thereby reduce their degree of legal, social and economic vulnerability. The issue is very important in Peru, which today is both a country of origin and destination for migrants. It is calculated that the country has some 13 million entries and exits, including the movements of both Peruvian citizens and foreigners.

The purpose of the SOCIEUX programme is to support the member countries in the design and management of their social protection systems. This support is provided through short-duration activities offered mainly by experts from public administrations and delegated bodies of the European Union Member States.