Tunis - 28 September 2022. The European Union-International Organization for Migation Joint Initiative for Migrant Protection and Reintegration organized a three-day media training for journalists from across the North Africa region to enhance informed migration reporting, focusing on return and reintegration.  

Held in Tunisia from 26/28 September 2022 and attended by 14 senior journalists coming from Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia, the training aimed to contribute to strengthening the understanding of media professionals of migration trends in North Africa. 

"This workshop is part of IOM's efforts to positively change existing perceptions and stereotype narratives, improve reporting, and establish solid foundations for ethical reporting directly impacting migrants. Reporters do have the ethical reporting responsibility to use accurate facts, verify information and data from the right sources, carefully choose the angle, and inform wider audiences on the benefits and risks of migration." Said Paola Pace, IOM Tunisia's Deputy Chief of Mission and Senior Regional Project Manager, in her opening remarks to the workshop. "Media in the MENA region remain a key partner for IOM aiming to shape migration discourse in line with the Global Compact for Migration." 

The three days training presented several specialized sessions including legal migrations definitions and terminologies, ethical reporting; challenges and solutions, and IOM’s return and reintegration policy. 

The sessions also discussed the latest migration trends in the region as well as the International Migration Review Forum (IMRF) that took place last May in New York and the EU-IOM Joint Initiative’s work with regards to return and sustainable reintegration were also discussed. 

Launched in December 2016, with support from the EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa, the EU-IOM Joint Initiative for Migrant Protection and Reintegration brings together 26 African countries of the Sahel and Lake Chad region, the Horn of Africa, and North Africa, the EU and IOM around the shared goal of ensuring that migration is safer, more informed and better governed for both migrants and their communities.   

In North Africa, the EU-IOM Joint Initiative programme  provided immediate assistance to more than 31,518 migrants and at least 25,746 migrants with voluntary return to their country of origin. Among them, over 988 received reintegration assistance in countries not covered by the EU-IOM Joint Initiative, and a further 235 migrants returned to North Africa received reintegration assistance including economic support, counselling, mental health and psychosocial support as of December 2021. 

For more information, please contact Tamim Elyan at telyan@iom.int.