While it is well established that two-thirds of the world's working population are
employed in the informal sector (Saxena & Tchagneno, 2023), it is paradoxical that the
SDGs do not explicitly address this sector. This reflection highlights the need to take
informal work into account in the pursuit of the SDGs, particularly those relating to the
eradication of poverty, the promotion of decent work and the fight against inequality.
With reference to the sub-Saharan African context, and particularly Cameroon, where
the informal sector is dominant, the analysis highlights the untapped potential of the
informal sector and the lack of attention paid by the SDGs to this major socio-economic
reality; it highlights some of the reasons for this situation and calls for an assessment of
the goals to actively include the informal sector in the global vision of sustainable
development.
The analysis goes beyond this criticism to propose innovative avenues for reflection.
Theses avenues include the need to take into account local specificities in order to
understand the real needs of the informal sector; the necessity and difficulties of
promoting sustainable wages and livelihoods in this sector, as well as the importance of
reflecting on the future of informal work in a changing global socio-economic context,
subject to numerous technological, social and political constraints. By emphasizing the
need to adapt strategies to local contexts, this presentation paves the way for a more
inclusive, effective and non-stereotypical approach to development policies and the
promotion of sustainable livelihoods.
Finally, this reflection concludes with an in-depth analysis of the lack of recognition of
the informal sector in the SDGs, while offering pragmatic suggestions for integrating
this crucial reality into the global quest for sustainable and equitable development.
Included among them is the applied psychology of indexing in general, and promoting
sustainable livelihoods in particular [