News/Reports
Deprecated: Required parameter $article_grouping_direction follows optional parameter $type in /home4/globalh4/public_html/modules/mod_articles_category_verge/helper.php on line 402
FORMER PRIME MINISTER OF GUINEA TO CHAIR GFI BOARD
Washington, DC – The Global Fairness Initiative (GFI), a leading NGO committed to the social and economic empowerment of the world’s working poor, announced the election of H.E. Kabine Komara, former Prime Minister of Guinea, as the new Chair of the GFI Board of Directors. H.E. Komara will replace outgoing Chairman Danilo Türk, former President of Republic of Slovenia. Komara’s election coincides with GFI’s 20th anniversary, and he is the fourth Head of State to serve as Chair of the GFI Board preceded by President Türk; José Maria Figueres, former President of Costa Rica; and William Clinton, former President of the United States.
“My congratulations to GFI for 20 years of pioneering work to uplift impoverished communities around the globe.” said President Turk. “It has been a pleasure to work alongside the leaders on this Board and I am so pleased that my friend Kabine will now Chair this exceptional organization. GFI has done so much to bring voice to the world’s working poor, and I am proud to have been part of their important work.”
H.E. Kabine Komara, is the former Prime Minister of Guinea and has been a member of the GFI Board for 6 years. Through more than 30 years of public service Prime Minister Komara has worked to address economic, social and natural resource challenges throughout the African continent. H.E. Komara is a former director of the African Export-Import Bank and High Commissioner of the Senegal River Basin Development Organization.
“We are honored to have Prime Minister Komara as our new Chair and we look forward to his leadership of this fantastic Board of Directors” said Karen Tramontano, Founder and President of Global Fairness Initiative. “I am also so thankful for President Turk's support over these many years and for the commitment of Kabine and our whole Board to GFI's important work.”
Since 2002, GFI has partnered with thousands of marginalized communities in Latin America, Africa, and Asia to enhance economic opportunities and build sustainable livelihoods. GFI has developed worker-centered programs that preserve and create jobs, empower women in the economy, advocate for informal worker rights, and build a future for workers is led by workers. By putting workers first and letting local partners lead, GFI helps ensure that communities of promise become centers of prosperity.
“It is an honor to Chair the GFI Board of Directors and to help advance our mission to create a more equitable, sustainable future for workers everywhere” said Prime Minister Komara. “I am grateful for the stewardship and friendship of Danilo, and for the confidence that Karen and the Board have shown in my leadership. I look forward to our work together in the pivotal years ahead.”
HE Kabine Komara
Guinea’s former Prime Minister is a well-known banker in the African continent and a former director at the African Export-Import Bank in Cairo, Egypt. Born and raised in Guinea, Mr. Komora studied management in Guinea’s capital Conakry, and then abroad in France, the United States and Egypt. He began his banking career at the Central Bank of Guinea and served as Assistant Director for Personnel in the Compagnie des Bauxites de Guinée as well a as Director of the Alumina Company of Guinea Aluminum. Rising in business and government, he was appointed Guinea’s National Director for Investment, a Member of the National Treasurer Committee Council and the Senior Advisor to the Ministry of Planning and Finance. In December 2008 H.E. Komara was appointed Prime Minister of Guinea and chose not to affiliate with any political party, but instead served the people and country of Guinea directly with a level of dignity and decorum that was widely regarded nationally and throughout the world. Following his Prime Ministership H.E. Komara was High Commissioner of the Organization for the Development of the Senegal River (OMVS) and authored a book that continues to serve as a key reference point on hydro diplomacy. Along with the Global Fairness Initiative, H.E. Komara serves on the Board of international foundations that address peace, security and environmental and water management.
| File | Description | File size |
|---|---|---|
 HE Komara Board Chair Press Release | 632 kB |
G20 leaders: Focus on lifting citizens out of poverty through decent jobs and living wages
By Karen A. Tramontano, Founder, Global Fairness Initiative and Sharon Waxman, President and CEO, Fair Labor Association
This weekend, India will host the G20 Leaders' Summit, bringing together the finance ministers of the major economic powers that drive the world’s global production.
This meeting is an essential forum to address significant issues related to the global economy. Critical issues are on the agenda, including climate change, the war in Ukraine, food insecurity, global poverty, and the U.S. inclusive economic growth agenda. One noticeably absent issue is a direct discussion about how the G20 countries can support decent jobs in informal and formal economies. Since India is hosting the G20, it is well-placed to lead this conversation.
In 2022, the World Bank identified India as one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. It already is South Asia’s largest economy and ranks fifth worldwide at $3.5 trillion. But jobs in the informal economy – where there are no legal rights for workers – dominate. India's informal economy currently makes up 43.1% of its GDP. Some estimates indicate that up to 90% of Indians work in the informal sector without formal employment rights or contracts.
The laws in India – the Employee's State Insurance Act of 1948 and the Employee's Provident Fund of 1952 – require medical, sickness, maternity, disability, and retirement benefits for workers. But these benefits only apply to those working in the formal economy, specifically to enterprises that employ more than ten workers.
It’s the same story in Brazil, South Africa, and other countries attending the G20 Leaders' Summit. A majority of the workforce in these countries is in the informal sector, where benefits and legal rights remain elusive. And, while the percentage of workers in the informal economy in the U.S. is not large, the circumstances for those workers - who tend to be migrants and other vulnerable workers – are the same.
While over the last ten years, many G20 countries, including India, have reduced the number of people living in extreme poverty (below $2.15 per person per day), G20 leaders must focus on decent jobs and informality cohesively. Until they do, the related challenges of child forced labor and lack of living wages that have plagued the people of these countries will persist.
When the G20 leaders meet next week, they can tackle this issue head-on. They can start by challenging the ill-fated "trickle-down" economic model that strives to tie global reductions in state spending to increased private investment to boost incomes and reduce poverty, which consistently fails to reduce poverty or create decent jobs and often instead ushers a race to the bottom on wages and labor protections.
The G20 must re-prioritize the economic needs of the bottom half of its society and focus its policy initiatives on lifting them out of poverty through decent jobs and living wages. The economies of the G20 need to work for and meet the human needs of all their citizens.
Sharon Waxman is president and CEO of the Fair Labor Association (FLA), an international network of companies, universities, and civil society organizations collaborating to ensure that millions of people working at the world’s factories and farms are paid fairly and protected from risks to their health, safety, and well-being.
GFI WELCOMES BOARD MEMBER AT 20TH ANNUAL MEETING
New York, NY – The Global Fairness Initiative (GFI), a leading NGO committed to social and economic equity for the world’s working poor, gathered in New York City today for the Annual Board of Directors meeting hosted at the Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice. The meeting marked the 20th anniversary of GFI’s founding and was an opportunity to welcome a new Director, Anna Eliasson Schamis. H.E. Danilo Türk, presided the meeting which marker 20 years since the organization was founded. Dr. Türk is the former President of Republic of Slovenia and is the third Head of State to serve as Chair of the GFI Board. He was preceded by former President of Costa Rica, José Maria Figueres, and by former U.S. President William Clinton.
“My congratulations to GFI for 20 years of pioneering work to uplift impoverished communities around the globe. It has been a pleasure to work alongside the leaders on this Board and I am so pleased welcome Anna to this exceptional organization. GFI has done so much to bring voice to the world’s working poor, and I am proud to be part of their important work.”
Anna Eliasson Schamis is the founder of the Eliasson Group and a former Vice President at the Atlantic Council. She served as Vice Chair the Board of the United States Association for United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the advisory Board of the Americas Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
“We are thrilled to welcome Ana Eliasson to this fantastic Board of Director” said Karen Tramontano, Founder and President of Global Fairness Initiative. “Ana and the entire Board bring deep experience and knowledge to GFI’s work, and it gives me great confidence to have this group of leaders guiding or important work.”
Since 2002, GFI has partnered with thousands of marginalized communities in Latin America, Africa, and Asia to enhance economic opportunities and build sustainable livelihoods. GFI has developed worker-centered programs that preserve and create jobs, empower women in the economy, advocate for informal worker rights, and build a future for workers is led by workers. By putting workers first and letting local partners lead, GFI helps ensure that communities of promise become centers of prosperity.
Anna Eliasson
Anna Eliasson Schamis is a fundraising and marketing professional with nearly 20 years of experience in international policy, development and humanitarian issues. Previously, Anna served as Vice President of Development and External Relations at the Atlantic Council where she quadrupled the Council’s revenue and led a $25M fundraising campaign for the creation of the Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security. Anna has also served as development directors of both the Aspen Institute and Cornell University. She is a member of the Advisory Board of the Americas Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). She served until recently as Vice Chair the Board of Directors of the United States Association for UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees). She holds an A.B. from Harvard University and an M.A. and M.Phil. in political science from Columbia University
| File | Description | File size |
|---|---|---|
| GFI - New BOD Anna Eliasson Release - 06212023.pdf | Eliasson Press Release | 555 kB |
| File | Description | File size |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 GFI Annual Report | 2022 Annual Report | 2401 kB |
Thank you Elaben
Today our global community and GFI have lost a champion and a friend with the passing of Ela Bhatt, founder of the Self-Employed Women's Association (SEWA). For 20 years GFI has worked in partnership with SEWA to advance the goals of dignity and prosperity for women set forth by Elaben over 50 years ago and she has been the inspiration for our mission to create a more equitable, sustainable world for the working poor. We mourn her loss, but we celebrate the extraordinary good she has done for our common humanity and for countless women whose lives she uplifted.
Elaben was the first recipient of GFI's Fairness Award in 2010 when she decried poverty as a violence against which we must all stand opposed. Throughout her life she lead this struggle against poverty and the marginalization of women, founding SEWA in 1972 and growing it to one of the largest, most influential organizations of working women globally. Her commitment to the principles of self-reliance and collective action are the foundation for the worker empowerment movement today, and through her example countless worker-centered organizations like the Global Fairness Initiative have been launched to advance the mission and model that she set forth.
With her passing GFI has lost a lodestar, but we will always be deeply committed to the organization she founded and to the principals for which she stood. Thank you Elaben, you will be missed.
GFI Board with Elaben at 2010 Fairness Award
