ILO launches diploma to strengthen evidence-based public policy for decent work and social justice

Geneva (ILO News) - The International Labour Organization (ILO), in partnership with the International Training Centre, has launched its Diploma in Evidence-Based Public Policy for Decent Work and Social Justice, responding to a growing global demand for rigorous, data-driven policymaking in an increasingly complex world of work.

The programme was unveiled during a virtual open house on 23 January 2026, which brought together participants from more than 40 countries. Aimed at policymakers, governments, employers' and workers' organisations, development partners and academia, the initiative supports fair and inclusive decision-making in a world of work shaped by climate change, rising inequalities, conflicts, economic volatility and technological disruption.

"Ideas are not enough. To make a difference, people need the capacity to turn evidence into action," said Caroline Fredrickson, Director of ILO Research Department. "This Diploma is a practical response to that gap. It helps decision-makers, policy analysts, and advocates move from research to results, with integrity, clarity, and courage."

The event featured a keynote address by leading economist Professor Jayati Ghosh, University of Massachusetts Amherst (USA) who explored the "uses, misuses, and the politics of numbers," and called for "greater accountability in how data is used to shape the policies that govern people's lives."

Running from January to December 2026, the Diploma consists of five modular courses, delivered online and in hybrid format between January and December 2026 covering:

• Understanding the Policy-Evidence Nexus
• Research Methods for Labour and Social Policies
• Storytelling with Evidence: Communicating for Impact
• Labour Market Data and Statistics for Policy
• International Training: From Research to Policy (Hybrid, Turin & Geneva)

Participants will develop real-world policy briefs, engage in peer learning, and receive mentoring from global experts. The programme builds on ILO's long-standing work on advancing decent work, labour standards, and social justice, and on more than a decade of global experience training over 1,000 policymakers across 60+ countries.

As one speaker noted during the launch: "Policy is the art of the possible, guided by the discipline of evidence."