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High level dialogue on migration and development can pave the way for much needed action
International Organisation for Migration (IOM)
September 12, 2006

Geneva - Consensus at the UN's High Level Dialogue on International Migration and Development later this week on major opportunities and challenges posed by migration could pave the way for much needed action to dramatically improve the positive effects of migration on development said the International Organization for Migration (IOM) today.

The Dialogue, to take place at the United Nations in New York on 14-15 September, will be the first time the subject of migration and development will be addressed at the UN at such a level and comes at a time when migration consistently tops the political, economic and social agendas across the world.

"The need to better match the global supply and demand of labour is a key issue in the current migration debate. Resolving this would not only have a significant impact on global economic development but would also help to combat irregular migration - an issue which represents the sharp end of the mismatch of supply and demand," said Brunson McKinley, IOM Director General. "This event can do much to ensure that migration becomes a potent force for development for all countries and economies and IOM welcomes that."

For many years, IOM, which will be participating at the High Level Dialogue, has been calling for and working on the integration of migration into development policy and planning, supported through better research and data and for the creation of more comprehensive and coherent migration policies.

Similarly, the Organization has been encouraging migrant diasporas to become active players in the development of their own countries. By helping them transfer some of their much needed skills and by putting in place incentives to help invest in income generating activities, diasporas can provide a critical boost to development. IOM believes the cost of remitting money back home to families should be reduced further and encourages the Dialogue to take up this issue.

The business community plays a critical role in the migration equation but has until recently been left out. IOM has itself created a Business Advisory Board aimed at bringing this important stakeholder into the migration debate in order to devise more effective migration policies.

"The Dialogue represents an important opportunity for debating and finally reaching a broad consensus on how to put migration at the service of development. Based on such a general understanding, the international community will be better positioned to define concrete, useful tools that can really make a difference to the way migration is managed. This way, the global economy would develop to the benefit of all," added McKinley. "It's ambitious but we need to be ambitious, and IOM is coming to New York with concrete proposals."

During the Dialogue, IOM will be presenting a multi-agency evolving concept for an International Migration and Development Initiative. It is aimed at helping address the need to better match the supply of and demand for labour and invest in human resource development, particularly in view of projections of aging and declining populations in much of the industrialized world and growing populations in the developing world. The proposal also contains substantial technical assistance and capacity building elements for governments, and opportunities for the private sector to invest in its success.

A matching process would also have the added and important value of providing greater protection to migrants and importantly to female migrants who make up nearly half of the world's migrant population, and who are often vulnerable to abuse and human trafficking.

IOM, which has begun the task of compiling and disseminating on-line information on the vast body of existing migration law, is also promoting a better understanding of international migration law. An improved knowledge and understanding of the human rights of migrants would not only result in the better treatment of migrants, but is also more likely to have a knock-on effect in terms of improved productivity and growth as well as greater social cohesion.

These actions are crucial in achieving more humane, safe and orderly migration flows and to making migration truly work for development. 

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