XIII-th BRICS Trade Union Forum. Sochi (Russia), September 7-9, 2024
XIII-th BRICS Trade Union Forum. Sochi (Russia), September 7-9, 2024
This year’s BRICS Trade Union Forum was a two-day event, organized by the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia (FNPR), with the motto "Strengthening Multilateralism for Equitable Global Development and Security". On the third day, the Forum participants joined the annual Meeting of BRICS Ministers of Labor and Employment.
The representatives of trade unions from several countries that applied for admission or were interested in the BRICS association, such as the Republic of Belarus and the Republic of Uzbekistan, as well as the representatives of regional international trade union organizations, such as the International Confederation of Arab Trade Unions, the Organization of African Trade Union Unity, and the General Confederation of Trade Unions, were also taking part in the Forum.
The delegates of the Forum have circumstantially discussed the socio-economic situation in their countries, adopted the Sochi Declaration of the Forum and the Procedure for the Admission of New Members to the BRICS Trade Union Forum. The trade union centers from the countries that had been admitted to BRICS in 2024 have officially joined the Forum.
At the opening of the Forum, the delegates were greeted by the President of Russia Vladimir Putin, Russia's Sherpa in the BRICS Association, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Sergey Ryabkov, and the President of the Rusian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) Alexander Shokhin. The Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Protection of Russia Alexey Vovchenko and the other officials have also addressed the Forum.
The FNPR President Mikhail Shmakov delivered a national report on behalf of the Russian trade unions. He emphasized that the national trade union centers of the new BRICS countries had already become the BRICS Trade Union Forum active participants, sending representative delegations to Sochi. He expressed hope that new members’ integration into this association will benefit all its participants and provide additional opportunities to protect the rights and interests of workers. While characterizing the state of affairs in Russia, Shmakov has described the robust economy marked by the growth of GDP, the record low unemployment, workers’ income increase, and excellent prospects in a number of sectors of the Russian economy, especially knowledge-intensive manufacturing industries and agriculture. The FNPR President endorsed the draft Declaration of the XIIIth BRICS Trade Union Forum and called for approval of the draft Procedure for the Admission of New Members to the BRICS Trade Union Forum. The representative of the Confederation of Labor of Russia (KTR), KTR President Boris Kravchenko has also welcomed the delegates of the Forum and endorsed the aforementioned draft documents.
The Brazilian delegation was represented by three speakers: the President of Força Sindical Miguel Eduardo Torres, the International Secretary of Central of Male and Female Workers of Brazil (CTB) Carlos Müller, and the President of Central Única dos Trabalhadores (CUT) Sergio Nobre.
Indian trade union centres were represented by two speakers: the member of the Central Working Committee of Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) Saji Narayanan and the National Secretary of All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) Chettykatil Jose Joseph.
The All-China Federation of Trade Unions’ report was presented by the ACFTU Vice Chairman and member of the Secretariat Zhong Hongjiang.
The national report on behalf of the South African trade union centers was delivered by the Deputy General Secretary of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), Gerald Twala.
A report on behalf of the Egyptian trade unions was delivered by the President of the Egyptian Trade Union Federation (ETUF) Abdelmonem Elgamal.
The Chairman of the Board of the Confederation of Islamic Labor Councils of Iran (CILCI) Oliya Alibeigi and the International Secretary of the Worker’s House of Iran Mohammad Hamzeh presented a report on behalf of the workers’ organizations of this country.
A national report of the Ethiopian trade unions was presented by the Chairman of the Audit Committee of the Confederation of Ethiopian Trade Unions (CETU) Olani Sekata Duressa.
The speakers have described the social and economic situation and highlighted the challenges faced by the trade union movement in their countries, approved the draft Declaration proposed by the Russian trade unions, and expressed agreement with the Procedure for the Admission of New Members to the BRICS Trade Union Forum.
Both the Sochi Declaration of the BRICS Trade Union Forum and the Procedure for the Admission of New Members were adopted by consensus, unanimously. Delegates representing Egypt, Iran and Ethiopia signed the foundational Declaration of the BRICS Trade Union Forum in presence of those gathered and thus became the full members of this trade union association.
The second plenary session of the Forum comprised the three panel discussions with the leading Russian experts: Nikolai Starikov, who made a presentation "What Does the Future Hold for Geopolitics and the Dominance of the Dollar?", Andrey Isaev, who devoted his speech to the "New Ideas for the Development of Labour Movement with Growing Emphasis on Sovereignty and De-globalisation of Economy", and Sergey Karaganov, who dwelled on "The Collapse of the Old System and Way Forward to a More Balanced World Order."
The Forum delegates have also taken part in the annual Meeting of BRICS Ministers of Labour and Employment, where they had the opportunity to express their opinions on the ministerial meeting’s agenda.
A number of multilateral negotiations and bilateral consultations on the significant issues of the international trade union movement were held on the sidelines of the BRICS Trade Union Forum.
The cultural program for the delegates included a visit to Matsesta - one of the oldest resorts in Sochi.