How can constituents from the Global South strengthen decent work and the care economy while advancing gender equality? This was the driving question behind the official launch of the South-4-Care Learning Hub, a new initiative jointly developed by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and its International Training Centre (ITCILO).

From 15 to 18 September 2025, over 120 participants from more than 30 countries gathered in Doha, Qatar, for an in-person learning event marking the second phase of this blended programme. Hosted in collaboration with the Ministry of Labour of Qatar, the event spotlighted the urgent need to recognize, value, and invest in care work.

A transformative space for collaboration

The South-4-Care Learning Hub aims to build the knowledge, capacity, and cross-country cooperation necessary to implement sustainable care policies. It offers a unique South-South and Triangular Cooperation platform for exchange, learning, and collective action.

Following a two-week digital immersion phase on the ITCILO eCampus, participants convened in Doha for an intensive in-person experience designed to translate theory into policy and practice. Sessions combined high-level technical content, peer-to-peer collaboration, and interactive workshops, covering:

• The ILO’s 5R Framework (Recognize, Reduce, Redistribute, Reward, Represent)
• The care economy’s role in promoting inclusive labour markets and gender equality
• Policy models and case studies from across the Global South
• Strategies for financing, regulating, and valuing care work

A launch with impact

The Doha event also marked the official launch of the South-4-Care digital platform, a dynamic space that will host knowledge tools, learning resources, and foster inter and intra regional collaboration beyond the classroom.

With expert contributions from the ILO, UN agencies, national governments, workers’ and employers’ organizations, and civil society, the event strengthened participants’ capacity to:

• Build national care systems with a gender and decent work approach
• Design integrated care policies that ensure decent work and social justice
• Build inclusive, people-centered care systems that leave no one behind

A growing global community

Participants left Doha energized and equipped with actionable strategies to implement in their national contexts—ranging from legal reforms and social protection extensions to public service delivery and workforce investment.

But the Learning Hub is just the beginning. The South-4-Care platform will remain active as a regional space for continuous engagement, peer learning, and resource sharing in support of ILO constituents and partners working on care policy development.

For more information on South4Care and access to resources, visit the ILO South4Care page

Explore the event photo gallery: Launch of South4Care | Flickr

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