Most of WIEGO's work is organized under these thematic areas. Each is essential to securing informal livelihoods, and there are multiple ways in which these themes intersect.
Inclusive Cities and the Urban Informal Economy
Cities that recognize informal workers and involve them in every aspect of planning can create cleaner, greener, more socially responsive and more vibrant cities.
Read more about inclusive cities
Organizing & Organizations
Informal workers are organizing for change around the world to overcome barriers. Their organizations need to be legally recognized and officially represented in collective bargaining, policy-making and rule-setting processes.
Law & Informality
Informal workers require a regulatory framework that protects their rights in the workplace, balances the needs of all stakeholders, and promotes a climate of stability and security. An appropriate legal framework can encourage economic development, allowing informal workers to achieve their full potential as workers and, often, as micro-entrepreneurs.
Read more about law & informatily
Social Protection
Millions of workers across the globe cannot access social benefits such as retirement funds, maternity benefits, health services, occupational health and safety, and child care.
Read more about social protection
Women's Economic Empowerment
For WIEGO, empowerment refers to the process of change that gives working poor women – as individual workers and as members of worker organizations – access to the resources they need while also gaining the ability to influence the wider policy, regulatory, and institutional environment that shapes their livelihoods and lives.
Learn more about women's economic empowerment
Formalizing and Formalization
What does formalization mean for the world’s majority of workers, who earn their livelihoods in the informal economy? And how can policymakers best approach this complex transition in a smart and sustainable way?