DFID’s Economic Development Strategy sets out a vision for lasting progress from ‘creating productive jobs for women and men that generate rising economic returns and improving working conditions’. The strategy highlights DFID’s ambition to promote inclusive growth through job creation, and to focus on creating jobs for those who are poor and marginalised and operating in the informal economy.

The construction sector in DFID focus countries is important in both economic and employment terms, and continues to grow in size. The sector is labour-intensive, currently employs more than 70 million workers in DFID countries of focus (around 7.6 per cent of total employment), and is expected to continue to expand. There is also low but growing participation of women (11.2 per cent).  ICED has therefore developed a wide range of papers on construction sector employment in low income countries.

Papers, case studies, presentations and research materials on this topic include: