Strengthening Dialogue to Make Migration Work for Development in the ESCAP and ESCWA Regions
28-30 June 2011
Beirut, Lebanon
The accelerating integration of the global economy has stimulated an increase in the volume and types of international migration, which is increasingly being considered as a tool for economic and social development. Migration has a significant impact on economic and social change both in countries of origin and in host countries.
Given the importance of migration from Asia-Pacific to Western Asia, ESCAP and the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) are jointly organizing an Interregional Workshop on “Strengthening Dialogue to Make Migration Work for Development in the ESCAP and ESCWA Regions", in the framework of a United Nations Development Account project on international migration jointly implemented by the five UN Regional Commissions and UNDESA. It will be convened at the United Nations House in Beirut, Lebanon from 28 to 30 June 2011.
Participants will share information and experiences in the following areas:
- Migration and development;
- Management of labour migration; and
- Protection of migrant workers, especially female migrant workers.
The outcome of the Workshop will feed into international consultative processes such as the Abu Dhabi Dialogue and the Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD) 2011. The papers presented at the Workshop and the discussions will also form the basis for an interregional study on migration and development.
For more information, see the following documents:
- Aide-Memoire (PDF 144 KB)
- Information Note for Participants (PDF 77 KB)
- Provisional Agenda (PDF 144 KB)
- Programme of the Meeting (PDF 64 KB)
Background materials
- Abu Dhabi Declaration of Asian Countries of Origin and Destination (PDF 158 KB)
- Study on the protection of migrant workers from and within South and South West Asia (PDF 2,772 KB)
- The Implications of the Sponsorship System: Challenges and Opportunities (PDF 21 KB)
- The Situation of Migrant Domestic Workers in Arab States A Legislative Overview (PDF 370 KB)
Presentations
Session 2. Key trends and challenges related to international migration and development
- Outline of migration between countries of the ESCAP and ESCWA Regions
(Ms. Sabine Henning, Population Affairs Officer, Migration Section, United Nations Population Division, New York) - The United Nations Development Account Project on International Migration: An overview of the main findings from the Latin American and Caribbean Region
(Mr. Paulo Saad, Chief, Population and Development Area, Population Division, ECLAC , Santiago, Chile) - The United Nations Development Account Project on International Migration: An overview of the main findings from the ESCWA Region
(Mr. Paul Tacon, Associate Population Affairs Officer, Population and Social Development Section, Social Development Division, ESCWA) - The United Nations Development Account Project on International Migration: An overview of the main findings from the ESCAP Region
(Ms. Vanessa Steinmayer, Social Affairs Officer, Social Development Division, Bangkok, Thailand)
Session 3. Managing international migration while protecting migrants
- The relationship between migration, development, and social protection
(Mr. Frederico Neto, Director, Social Development Division, ESCWA) - Protection of the rights of migrant workers from South Asia: key issues
(Ms. Nicola Piper, Arnold-Bergstraesser-Institute, Freiburg, Germany) - The implications of the recent reform of the sponsorship system: challenges and opportunities
(Ms. Hélène Harroff-Tavel, Regional Office for the Arab States, International Labour Organization) - Challenges related to managing migration in countries of origin: The case of recruitment cost in Bangladesh
(Ms. Tasneem Arefa Siddiqui, Chair, Refugee and Migratory Movements Research Unit – RMMRU, University of Dhaka, Dhaka, Bangladesh)
Session 4. Assessing migration from a gender perspective
- The situation of female workers from ESCAP countries in vulnerable sectors of the economy in the GCC, Jordan and Lebanon
(Ms. Simel Esim, Senior Technical Specialist, Gender Equality and Women Workers’ Issues, International Labour Organization; and Ms. Carole Kerbage, ESCWA Consultant) - The migratory experience of returned migrant domestic workers: the example of Indonesia
(Ms. Aswatini Raharto, Deputy for Social Sciences and Humanities (IPSK), Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), Jakarta, Indonesia)
Session 5. Sharing national experiences and good practices related to the management of international migration and the protection of migrants