The potential and challenges in supporting decent work in Sub-Saharan Africa

In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), divisions in the institutionalisation and formalisation of employment relations are found across all sectors. The informal economy, which accounts for an estimated 83% of employment, is a defining characteristic of SSA and must be central to any discussion of employment regulation and decent work policies. This raises fundamental questions about the relevance of existing frameworks for regulation, voice and representation, unionisation and work organisation when applied to contexts where formal labour law covers only a minority of workers. This special issue examines different aspects of decent work, including the experiences of blue-collar and platform workers, mechanisms for building worker voice, the obstacles that these efforts encounter, and the difficulties that informal unions and workers face in advocating for decent work. Drawing on the work of African labour scholars and the papers in this collection, the editorial argues for a context-specific approach to decent work policy in SSA. An approach that aligns with the developmental realities of SSA and with the lived experiences of workers and worker voice in the region.