One year on: a summary of the ILO’s post-tsunami work in Thailand
Survivors of the Asian tsunami report that there were several massive waves that in rapid succession hammered the coast the Andaman Ocean provinces of Phang Nga, Phuket, Krabi, and Ranong, Trang and Satun on the morning of December 26, 2004. Those walls of water caused thousands of deaths, and untold suffering of survivors who suffered grievous physical injuries, mental anguish, loss of loved ones, destruction of home, business, and property, and loss of jobs. But in hindsight, it is clear there was also a 'second tsunami', an economic tsunami, that struck that day. Many observers are calling this the "second wave" of the disaster. Almost a year later, the impact of second wave is still being felt. The difference is this second wave struck virtually all the inhabitants of these provinces, not just those who were in the immediate path of the first tsunami on that fateful morning. To help workers and employers in this desperation situation, the International Labour Organization (ILO) launched its project for "Post Tsunami Livelihood Recovery in the Tourism Sector" with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). A six month intervention designed to jump start collaboration for recovery, the project focuses on getting resources down to local membership organizations and national NGOs providing specialised services supportive of livelihood recovery. As the only UN agency with a unique tripartite governance structure that includes representatives of government, labor and employers, and a mandate to promote employment and decent work, the ILO is ideally suited to tackle the 'second wave' of economic dislocations from the Asian tsunami. This paper focuses on first explaining the unique approaches taken by the ILO to meet this challenge. It will then amplify how these approaches underpinned successful strategies that produced significant results within months. Finally, the paper will summarize the project's activities with its partners and the specific impacts these activities are having.