Cairo – On Monday June 20^th, the International Organization for Migration (IOM)’s regional office for the Middle East and North Africa and the Government of Egypt held a briefing for regional partners on the outcomes of the first International Migration Review Forum (IMRF) held in May 2022.

The briefing saw the participation of representatives from the diplomatic community, government, NGOs, academia, and other stakeholders with the aim of building on the discussions that took place at the IMRF in New York that culminated with a Progress Declaration outlining future path for implementing the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM).

“During the past years, our region has witnessed significant steps towards the advancement of good migration governance,” said Ms. Carmela Godeau, IOM Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa. “Positive initiatives by Member States included the development, adoption, and implementation of national migration policies and action plans, the establishment of national coordination mechanisms and inter-agency working groups on migration.” she added.

The discussions during the briefing included reflections on the Progress Declaration from various points of views in line with the GCM’s concept of whole-of-government and whole-of-society approaches. It also saw discussions on what opportunities this milestone event provides to the MENA region for enhancing the implementation of the GCM.

“I believe that in our discussions today, it is critical to exchange experiences on how all stakeholders can cooperate in formulating the right mix of humanitarian, developmental and peace approaches, in order to mitigate the adverse drivers to irregular migrations, introduce solutions that enhance legal pathways, reduce barriers to regular migration and ensure protection and portability of rights for migrant labor,” said Ambassador Neveen El Hosseiny, Deputy Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister for Migration, Refugees and Combatting Trafficking in Persons, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Egypt.

The Progress Declaration was adopted by 110 countries at the end of the IMRF and was preceded by a multi-stakeholder hearing, interactive intergovernmental and multi-stakeholders round tables, a policy debate, and a plenary session with the participation of a wide variety of stakeholders and senior government and international organizations representatives.

“The IMRF Progress Declaration represents an opportunity for the MENA region to re-direct and strengthen their efforts to implement the GCM goals through a whole-of-society approach,” said Professor Ayman Zohry, Center for Migration and Refugee Studies, American University of Cairo.

The IMRF will be held every four years starting in 2022 and will serve as the primary global intergovernmental platform for Member States and other relevant stakeholders to discuss and share progress on the implementation of the GCM.

This first IMRF is a milestone along the path towards realizing the vision of the GCM and turning ongoing commitments into reality with the support of the UN system. The number of pledges made is a step closer to changing the lives of the 281 million migrants in the world.

Since the launch of its Pledging initiative in December 2021, the UN Network on Migration has received 158 pledges, with over 100 pledges made by 25 Member States. Several States pledged additional financing to the Migration Multi-Partner Trust Fund while others committed to undertake policy and legal work on migration such as on ending migration detention of children or addressing the impacts of climate change.

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