New Delhi [India], November 5 (ANI): Union Minister for Labour and Employment and Youth Affairs and Sports, Mansukh Mandaviya, attended the inaugural plenary session of the Second World Summit for Social Development in Doha, Qatar, along with over 180 dignitaries from various countries.

According to the Ministry of Labour and Employment, the day also witnessed substantive bilateral and multilateral interactions aimed at deepening labour cooperation, advancing social protection dialogues, and positioning India's digital and human capital achievements at the global stage.

In his remarks at the High-Level Round Table on 'Strengthening the three pillars of social development - Poverty Eradication, Full and Productive Employment and Decent Work for All, and Social Inclusion.', the Union Labour Minister highlighted that India's model integrates high growth with high inclusion. 'India has demonstrated that a country can empower millions of its citizens by combining digital innovation with financial inclusion and ensuring that economic progress leads to social inclusion,' he said.

Mandaviya highlighted the decisive action taken by the Government of India on all three pillars of social development. He stated that over 170 million new jobs were created between 2016-17 and 2023-24, women's employment participation doubled and unemployment declined from 6% to 3.2%. Labour laws were consolidated into four simplified Labour Codes, and India is progressing towards universal pension coverage, he further added. 'India's digital infrastructure has ensured seamless delivery of welfare benefits to more than 1.4 billion citizens,' he said.

'As a result of these efforts, India's social protection coverage has surged from 19% in 2015 to 64.3% in 2025. Acknowledging the same, the International Social Security Association has conferred India with the Award for Outstanding Achievement in Social Security, this year,' Mandaviya noted. 'India has shown that rapid and inclusive growth drives social transformation. Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, we continue this legacy, uniting economic progress with social development,' he further added.

Mandaviya met the Minister of Labour of Mauritius and held wide-ranging discussions on expanding cooperation in the fields of skill development, labour mobility, digital labour platforms, and social protection. India underlined the special historical relationship with Mauritius and expressed readiness to support capacity building in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).

The Union Minister highlighted India's success in building Digital Public Goods in the labour ecosystem, including the National Career Service (NCS) portal and the e-Shram database - the world's largest Aadhaar-verified registry of unorganised workers. The Minister encouraged Mauritius to utilize these platforms for talent sourcing and collaboration. India's achievement of expanding social protection coverage from 19% in 2015 to 64.3% in 2025 was also appreciated during the meeting.

In the bilateral meeting with Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, Executive Secretary, United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), Mandaviya highlighted India's long-standing association with ESCAP as a founding member and reaffirmed its commitment towards regional cooperation in disaster management, skills recognition, and digital welfare delivery.

The Minister underlined the strong progress that India has made in lifting 250 million citizens out of multidimensional poverty in the past decade, driven by digital governance reforms, direct benefit transfer systems, and large-scale social sector investments. ESCAP appreciated India's advancements in the field of social security and digital governance. India expressed readiness to deepen technical collaboration with ESCAP on cross-border skills standards for green, digital, and care economy sectors.

India's engagements throughout the day further strengthened bilateral partnerships, enhanced cooperation with UNESCAP, and reinforced India's leadership narrative on digital social protection, skills, and inclusive labour markets at the global level.

According to the release, the United Nations General Assembly, through its resolutions 78/261 and 78/318, decided to convene the 'World Social Summit' in 2025, under the title 'the Second World Summit for Social Development.' Convening at the level of Heads of State or Government, the summit aims to address the gaps and recommit to the Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development and the Programme of Action and its implementation and give momentum towards the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. The summit is being held at Doha, Qatar from 4-6 November.

The High-level Round Table at the Second World Summit for Social Development takes the form of an open, multi-stakeholder exchange. It seeks to identify priorities for integrated actions that would accelerate social development progress while taking into account global systemic trends and their impacts on the three core commitments of the Copenhagen Declaration. (ANI)