MAINSTREAMING MIGRATION, DEVELOPMENT AND REMITTANCES IN THE LDC POST-BRUSSELS PLAN OF ACTION

1. UNLDC-IV Pre-conference event New York, 17 June 2010 MAINSTREAMING MIGRATION, DEVELOPMENT AND REMITTANCES IN THE LDC POST-BRUSSELS PLAN OF ACTION Michele Klein Solomon Director, Migration Policy and Research IOM Geneva

2. OVERVIEW 2

3. 1. INTRODUCTION • IOM‘s involvement in LDCs dates back to 2001: Key message: Need for mainstreaming migration into UNLDC-IV 3

4. 2. MIGRATION TRENDS AND KEY CHALLENGES • Contrary to common perception, South-South migration is significantly more important in LDCs than South-North (World Bank, 2008) • LDCs are particularly affected by highly skilled emigration to OECD countries, especially among women: • 34% of LDC workers in OECD countries in 2000 (Docquier and Marfouk, 2006) • Emigration rate of highly-skilled women from LDCs 17.1 % in 2000 (Docquier et al., 2008) • Migrants from LDCs send home billions in remittances • USD 24 billion in remittances 2009; 1.5 billion more than in 2008 (World Bank, 2009; Ratha et al., 2010) • Despite low in absolute numbers, important for LDCs in relative terms as second only to ODA, superseded FDI in 2007 Key messages: Challenge: Incomplete and unreliable data Private funds, cannot substitute official flows 4

5. 2. MIGRATION TRENDS AND KEY CHALLENGES • Fast demographic growth and rural-urban migration in LDCs can strain infrastructure, service delivery and human development • Population to increase by 200 million until 2020 • Urban population expected to grow by 120 million until 2020 (UN DESA/pop, 2008; 2009) • Increasing numbers of immigrants in LDCs • Number grew by 600,000 since 2000; 47.6% are female migrants (UN DESA/pop, 2009) • LDCs host significant numbers of refugees and IDPs • 1 in 5 refugees worldwide in 2008 received protection in an LDC • At least 2 out of 5 IDPs were forced to move within an LDC (10.5million; UNHCR, 2009) 5

6. 2. MIGRATION TRENDS AND KEY CHALLENGES Labour migration trends in LDCs: • Some of the populous Asian LDCs and Island States resorted to labour markets overseas • Predominantly intra-regional labour migration flows in sub-Saharan Africa and from Haiti • Themajority of workers from LDCs are lower skilled, yet immigration policies tend to favour the highly skilled • LDCs are promoting temporary market access under GATS ‘mode 4‘ specifically for low-skilled service providers Key message:  Labour mobility can entail signficant welfare gains, triple ‘win‘ situation • Youth unemploymentas a driver of migration could turn young people into ‘youth bulge‘ 6

7. 2. MIGRATION TRENDS AND KEY CHALLENGES • Still lacking: Effective respect for human rights of migrants, migrant workers and their children • Extent of irregular migration not exactly known • possibly between 1.2 and 1.7 million in LDCs (= 10-15% of international migrants; ILO, 2004) • The dangers of irregular migration: • Sexual exploitation and forced labour, women and children particularly vulnerable • Trafficking in human beings • Lack of access to basic services Key message  Protection of human rights remains a challenge 7

8. 2. MIGRATION TRENDS AND KEY CHALLENGES • LDCs are particularly vulnerable to the detrimental effects of climate change and environmental degradation as a driver of migration • up to 860 million people in LDCs and SIDS could be affected(UN-OHRLLS, 2009) • 6 out of 20 countries with the highest level of disaster- related displacement in 2008 were LDCs (IDMC and OCHA, 2009) • Low coping capacity 8

9. 2. MIGRATION TRENDS AND KEY CHALLENGES Development impact of climate change • Effects on human health • Gradual deterioration of the resource base • Impact on agricultural production • Water stress • Increase in hunger, food crises and poverty • Magnitude of movements from megacities in coastal areas in LDCs like Bangladesh and Myanmar could increase further • Threat for livelihood strategies and human security through high number of rural and poor populations in LDCs Key message:Need to recognize migration as an adaptation strategy, e.g. in NAPAs 9

10. 3. THE IMPACT OF THE GLOBAL ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL CRISIS 10

11. 4. THE CONTRIBUTION OF REMITTANCES & OTHER DIASPORA RESOURCES TO DEVELOPMENT The impact is dependent on the broader economic and political context Impact of remittances at the macroeconomic level: • Key source of foreign exchange • Increase external value of currency or exchange rate • High dependence can pose risks … and at the microeconomic level: • Expand HH income – poverty alleviation • Realization of the human rights to food, education, health care • Inherent risks of dependency on remittances • Mostly used for consumption, e.g. Angola, Bangladesh case studies 11

12. 4. THE CONTRIBUTION OF REMITTANCES & OTHER DIASPORA RESOURCES TO DEVELOPMENT Potential role of the diasporas: Private sector contributions • Role in private sector development still at nascent stage • Lower risk perception than traditional investors • Remittances can offer • Access to capital, thus fostering entrepreneurship • Finance for public infrastructure projects e.g. in Senegal River Valley in West Africa • Promotion of the development of the financial sector • Sharing of know-how and innovative practices through transnational networks e.g. HTAs of Haitians in the US 12

13. 4. THE CONTRIBUTION OF REMITTANCES & OTHER DIASPORA RESOURCES TO DEVELOPMENT Potential role of diaspora members: Trade contributions • Knowledge of the local context in origin countries and the market in the destination country - Caribbean diaspora networks in trade, tourism, investment • Networks and contacts in origin and destination countries - Samoan migrants in NZ Transfer of skills, technology and ideas • Transfer of new values, expectations, ideas and social capital -President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf of Liberia • New techniques and transfer of human capital - workers from Vanuatu returning from NZ • Donation of technology - IOM‘s MIDA project in Ethiopia • Virtual transfer of skills - IOM‘s Temporary RQN project in Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Sierra Leone and Sudan Key message: Potential role of diasporas in trade and economic development 13

14. 4. THE CONTRIBUTION OF REMITTANCES & OTHER DIASPORA RESOURCES TO DEVELOPMENT The potential role of diaspora members in peacebuilding • Remittances provide a lifeline to relatives, e.g. Haiti, Somalia • Support reconstruction efforts • Filling critical human resource gaps by mobilizing diasporas, e.g. IOM‘s MIDA Somalia, TRQN to Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Sierra Leone and Sudan • Generate employment As politically sensitive • Need to build trust, e.g. through ‘Diaspora Dialogues‘ in the Great Lakes region, Sudan Key message:This role could be explored and strengthened further  see UN SG 2009 report on “Peacebuilding in the immediate aftermath of conflict“ 14

15. 5. POLICY IMPLICATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 15

16. 5. POLICY IMPLICATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Policylevels Local / National / Bilateral / Regional / Global / Transnational 1. Enhance data collection Examples: • Add migrationquestionstopopulationcensuses in LDCs • Migration Profiles, covering 6 LDCs in Central and West Africa 2. Maximize the benefits of human mobility • Short-term labour migration schemes • GATS ‘Mode 4’ for low-skilled workers 3. Facilitatemigrant remittances' transfers • Lower transfer costs through improved technology and cooperation • Linking remittances to financial products and services The way forward 16

17. 5. POLICY IMPLICATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 4. Leverage diasporas contributions Examples: • Fostering partnerships with diasporas through outreach, recognition and institutionalization of diaspora contributions • Supporting investments by diaspora members in regions of origin 5. Enhance capacities and institutional reforms • Managing the mobility of human resources for development purposes • Enhancing capacities of migrants’ and diasporas’ networks 6. Target measures to pro-poor and vulnerable populations • Development of national policy plans for migration induced by climate change or environmental degradation • Mitigating the impact of the global economic crisis through delivery of social services for most vulnerable populations The way forward 17

18. 5. POLICY IMPLICATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS New initiatives underway: • International Migrant Remittances Observatory for LDCs (IMRO) under the leadership of Benin • ACP Observatory on Migration, part of the ACP Migration Initiative, started recently • African Remittance Institute (ARI): Signature of agreement in December 2009 • ‘Mainstreaming Migration into Development Planning: A Handbook for Policy-Makers and Practitioners‘by IOM and Global Migration Group (GMG) Key message:Mainstreaming migration into LDCs‘ post- Brussels Plan of Action, national and regional reviews 18 18

19. THANK YOU mkleinsolomon@iom.int