Our organization
Who we are?
WAPES is
- The global platform for the exchange of information and knowledge between Public Employment Services ;
- a partner in the field of employment
- and labour market issues.
| WAPES… for its members: | WAPES… by its members: |
Solidarity among PES to provide answers to the challenges they face; Connection and networking between the different PES ; A common database (contacts, skills, …) ; Linking up users with PES ; A cooperation fund and a participation fund so that all PES can join in our activities ; PES evaluation: peer review, surveys, polls, investigations, in-depth analyses, etc ; International conferences: face-to-face or online conferences ; Pooling and sharing of good practices, benchlearning, with, notably, the SamPES project ; A constantly updated website with documentation and information about our members and our activities; A ambitious digital platform ; Dynamic social networks. | Collaboration with the world-wide network of PES through: Communicating and sharing articles, publications, videos, etc. about your work. Communicating and sharing articles, publications, videos, etc. about your work. In this way, we will keep WAPES’ members informed about PES news via the website, social networks, and our newsletter, in the three official languages (Spanish, English, French) ; Active participation of members in various training workshops, conferences, surveys, polls, social networks, etc. ; The occasional provision of collaborators to take part in the WAPES various activities contributing thereby to the improvement of good practices ; The designation by each affiliated PES of a contact person, a reference person representing his or her organisation, to set up and maintain a privileged and regular contact with the Executive Secretariat ; The provision of specialised staff (IT, economists, consultants, etc.) to participate in the daily management of the association and the executive secretariat, from Brussels or from the home country, over long or short periods of time ; The transmission of information by PES members to all their collaborators and staff, within their own institutions but also to their partners to publicize WAPES and its work locally, nationally, and internationally. |
Our structure
WAPES’ legal structure is an INPA (International Not for Profit Association) according to Belgian law.
WAPES is organised in five world regions, each having a Vice-President as their representative:
Africa – Americas – Asia and Pacific – Europe – Middle East and the Arabic countries
The decision making bodies of WAPES are:
General Assembly
Managing Board
The executive bodies of WAPES are:
The President
The Executive Secretary
The Treasurer
The Vice-Presidents

How we are funded
To a large extent WAPES is financed by membership fees, calculated on the basis of staff numbers and GDP per capita in US dollars (based on the IMF Economic database and the PPP method, Purchasing-Power-Parity).
Above the membership fees WAPES is also financed by income from publications and technical services, subsidies, donations and legacies as well as bank interest.
General Assembly
The General Assembly is, among other things, responsible for approving the annual budget, the statutes and the general plans for future activities, electing the President, the members of the Managing Board and the Auditors.
The General Assembly is held in May or June every year. Every three years the General Assembly is held in one of the member countries and the second two years WAPES arranges an E-General Assembly, a written procedure.

Managing Board
The Managing Board consists of the President and 16 members elected by the General Assembly for a three-year period.
Among other things, the Managing Board is responsible for ensuring effective administration of the organisation and for carrying out the decisions made by the General Assembly.
It proposes a general plan for future activities, prepares management reports on activities that have taken place and prepare the General Assembly.
The Managing Board meets at least once a year.
For the 2025–2028 mandate, the Presidency of WAPES is held by Slovenia. The Vice-Presidencies are: Mali (Africa), Mauritania (Middle East and Arab Countries – MEAC), Republic of Korea (Asia-Pacific), Türkiye (Europe), and Uruguay (Americas). The Managing Board is composed of Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Estonia, France, Japan, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Zimbabwe. The Netherlands serves as Treasurer, while Benin and Germany have been appointed as Internal Auditors.
How to become a member ?
WAPES members are public employment services. Either national public or governmental bodies responsible for activities related to employment management or implementation of labour market policies. The membership is at country level. The Director General, or another person pointed out by him or her, represents the member country. For any further inquiries concerning membership in WAPES, please send us an e-mail, by using the form under the headline “Contact us” in the header of every page of the website. For more information about our current members, don’t hesitate to visite the member’s page.


