Leaving Local Organizations in the Lurch

Engaging local organizations is crucial to improving labor conditions because they are deeply embedded in local contexts and often serve as trusted intermediaries between workers, communities, and the private sector. When ILAB’s funding was terminated, the MY Voice project in Malaysia was gearing up to launch an innovative funding program called the Advocacy and Engagement Initiative (AEI). The goal of the AEI was to enable civil society organizations, unions, and informal groups advocating for labor rights in Malaysia to launch or expand their awareness-raising activities and initiatives, while building the skills necessary to continue this work in the long term.  

Local organizations would begin by submitting an application to fund their chosen awareness-raising activity, providing an opportunity to practice identifying and securing external funding. Once selected, the AEI would not only provide the organizations with funding but also ongoing support in implementing their activities, with each recipient paired with a designated MY Voice coach. Throughout the funding cycle, MY Voice would also provide organizations with training on awareness-raising and communications, project implementation and skills development, and other institutional development topics within a collaborative environment of peer organizations.  

This type of engagement with local organizations in Malaysia is essential for shifting power dynamics in the worker rights conversation. By encouraging CSOs, unions, and community networks to raise awareness of forced labor and child labor, the AEI would also empower them to become active problem solvers and build their capacity to implement similar projects moving forward, thereby strengthening these local networks of workers' rights advocates. ILAB’s funding termination leaves local organizations who were planning to apply for the AEI at a loss, hindering opportunities for local capacity building and long-term improvements for workers in Malaysia, who migrate from many countries and contribute to vital global trade and economies.  

Cutting this program will directly impact over 3,000 people in Malaysia.