Spain's Labor and Social Security Inspectorate (ITSS) collaborated this week in a technical mission with the Ministry of Labor, Employment, and Social Security of Paraguay (MTESS). This initiative, part of the international M-GA program driven by the International Labour Organization (ILO), the World Bank, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), aims to strengthen the MTESS's technical capabilities.
The primary objective is to identify improvements for employment formalization, strengthening labor records, expanding social security coverage, and reducing barriers to formal employment, particularly for youth and women.
Over five working days in Madrid, representatives from the State Agency for Labor and Social Security Inspection (OEITSS) and the General Treasury of Social Security (TGSS) shared Spanish experience in key areas such as combating undeclared work, inspection planning, coordination between public bodies, and the use of technological tools for fraud detection.
The mission included presentations of Spanish experience, analysis of its applicability to the Paraguayan context, and bilateral meetings. Spain showcased its experience in training ITSS officials, the role of labor inspection in social security and planning, and the monitoring and evaluation system through Integra.
The visit involved specialists from the World Bank, the ILO, and the M-GA project. Paraguay was represented by the Directorate of Employer and Worker Registration and the General Directorate of Labor Inspection and Enforcement. They were received by the ITSS Director-General, Cristina Fernández, accompanied by Néstor Fraile and Gregoria Chala Lafuente, among others.
This mission will lay the groundwork for recommendations to modernize Paraguay's labor inspection, strengthen its labor regulations, and promote the integration of young people and women into formal employment, while also opening new avenues for cooperation between the two nations.
