China-ILO Cooperation Factsheet (ILO, November 2021)

January 26, 2022

The People’s Republic of China is a founding member State of the International Labour Organization (ILO). The country has ratified 26 Conventions, which include four Fundamental Conventions, two prioritized Governance Conventions, and 20 Technical Conventions. The ILO and China have a long-standing partnership that has intensified in recent years on South-South and triangular cooperation (SSTC) and with voluntary contributions by China to the ILO’s Development Cooperation Programme.

The ILO office in Beijing was established in 1985 and oversees ILO’s activities in China (including the Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions) and Mongolia. Since the beginning of the country’s transition to a market economy, the ILO has been providing technical assistance to the Chinese government and social partners in areas such as labour legislation, employment promotion and social security reform. The first Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the ILO and MOHRSS in 2001 deepened the cooperation in developing the labour market policies supporting China’s transition from a centrally planned to a market economy

This factsheet by the International Labour Organization offers an overview of the work China is doing in partnership with the Government of China, and the way forward in terms of expanding this partnership.