ILO elects first African to head the organisation

Togo's former prime-minister Gilbert Houngbo was elected this Friday as the Director-General of the International Labour Organisation.

Houngbo is the first African to occupy this positon.

The former prime minister of Togo succeeds former British trade unionist Guy Rider who has been in office for 10 years.

Gilbert Houngbo was a deputy director of ILO between 2013 and 2017 in charge of Field Operations.

His main opponent was former French labour minister Muriel Pénicaud, who was backed by Paris and the European bloc.

The director-general will take up his position in October and will have to face a number of challenges namely associated to teleworking that was given a boost during the Covid-19 pandemic.