Amy Pope, Director-General of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), stated on Tuesday that migration is a critical engine of economic resilience, growth, and prosperity. In Lagos, Pope Francis stated that migrants are frequently a solution to some of the world’s most severe issues, including as climate change. She spoke at the start of the 2024 International Dialogue on Migration.
IOM organised the debate, which had the theme “Facilitating Regular Pathways to a Better Future: Harnessing the Power of Migration.” According to Pope, the 2030 Agenda openly acknowledges that migration can be a significant accelerator for sustainable development due to its benefits.
According to her, the benefits might include economic success, skill exchange, labour force strengthening, and cultural diversity.
“This is research-based; overwhelming evidence supports this, and one example is featured in our most recent World Migration Report. “Over the previous 20 years, international remittances have surged by a stunning 650 percent. In 2000, remittances were worth $128 billion (IOM).
“Today, remittances bring $831 billion back into countries. Migrants sent $647 billion to low- and middle-income nations from this total. “We know that, for many of these countries, these remittances constitute a significant portion of their GDP and, in fact, surpasses direct foreign investment,” the pontiff stated.
She did, however, argue that the benefits of migration should not be viewed solely in terms of what migrants may provide to countries or communities. She stated that the relationship between migration and development is complex, and that possible destination countries’ political, social, and economic processes must define how, where, and when migration will take place.
The Pope stated that conversations about investment should include investments in people and migration. According to her, the solution is to provide safe and regular migration channels that limit the risk of exploitation, safeguard migrants’ human rights and dignity, and allow them to access necessary services in destination countries.
“Regular paths can help people integrate into their communities by safely connecting them to commodities, services, knowledge, and innovation. “When migration is badly managed, it has a detrimental influence on development, which is why enabling paths is one of our top strategic goals (IOM).
“Our goal is to ensure that migration and migrants’ needs are considered across all policy areas and across all laws and regulations – from health to urban planning, education, fiscal policy and trade,” she stated. She asked governments and other stakeholders to implement programmes that provide help and protection to migrants while also raising knowledge of their options, rights, and services (IOM).
During the conversation, Pope announced the appointment of America Ferrera, an Oscar-nominated actress and social activist, as the organization’s new global goodwill ambassador. Ferrera stated at the occasion that she has always been enthusiastic about migration issues. She said that, as the daughter of Honduran immigrants to the United States, migration was very important to her.
IOM
“As an advocate, I’ve spent years listening to and learning about migrants’ experiences and problems, and I’ve had the luxury of observing the tremendous worth they have to offer. “I am very excited at the opportunity to continue amplifying stories that move us towards better and safer solutions for global migration,” she stated. (NAN)
Source: guardian.ng
