Friday, 16 November 2018
The Colombo Process 6th Ministerial Consultation was held in Kathmandu, Nepal under the theme of “Safe, Regular and Managed Migration: A Win-Win for All” on 16 November 2018. The event was inaugurated by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defense of Nepal Hon. Mr. Ishwar Pokharel.
In his welcome statement, Hon. Mr. Gokarna Bista, Minister for Labour, Employment and Social Security and Chair in Office of the Colombo Process stated that safe labour migration has been receiving the attention it needed from the international community, which is evidenced by the inclusion of international migration related elements in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) that will be adopted in December 2018. However, he recognized that some categories of workers are more vulnerable than others and merit special attention and protection measures. In particular, low skilled workers and women migrant domestic workers engaged are most vulnerable, and that Member States should seek a common approach to reduce risks of the migrants and jointly address such issues.
Hon. Mr. Pradeep Kumar Gyawali, Foreign Minister of Nepal lauded the Colombo Process Member States joint recommendations to the GCM document, to be adopted in December and the concerted efforts of the Colombo Process Member States towards overseas employment dignified and managed. He also stressed developing mechanisms for productive usage of the remittances transferred by labour migrants.
Welcoming remarks by IOM Director General, Mr. António Vitorino, were reiterated by Dr. Nenette Motus, IOM’s Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, underscoring the significance of the contribution by Colombo Process Member States to the GCM, and stressing the importance of similar cooperation and collaboration for its implementation.
Hon. Mr. Ishwar Pokharel, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defense speaking as a special guest said the workers should not be denied safer and well-managed migration opportunities. He stated that there are several incidents of migrant workers suffering due to protection gaps and decent work deficits throughout the labour migration process, beginning with recruitment. These complex problems can only be resolved through collective consultation and efforts of source and destination countries.
During the Consultation, the Ministers and head of delegations from twelve Member States made their country statements.
The event was participated by observer countries (Japan, Qatar, Republic of Korea and Switzerland), relevant regional fora (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation), development partners, civil society and UN agencies that included Helvetas, Migrant Forum in Asia, International Labour Organization, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, United Nations Development Programme, UN Women and World Bank. IOM officials from their headquarters in Geneva, Bangkok, Colombo and Kathmandu participated in the event. IOM is Secretariat of the Colombo Process and also supports the thematic activities of the Colombo Process through the Colombo Process Technical Support Unit based in Sri Lanka.
The event concluded with an adoption of 27 points Kathmandu Declaration that aims at making labour migration safe, managed and dignified. The Colombo Process Member States also agreed to continue the self-funding mechanism to support their activities, continue the Colombo Process work in its five thematic areas through the integration of four additional thematic areas (migrant health, operationalization of migration-related elements of the SDGs, promotion of equality for women migrant workers and consular support and access to remedy for migrant workers). Member States also reaffirmed the importance of the continuation of the Colombo Process Technical Support Unit for follow-up and support of the work of the thematic area working groups.
Senior Officials’ Meeting
The Ministerial Consultation was preceded by the 5th Senior Officials’ Meeting held on 15 November, which was inaugurated by Hon. Mr. Gokarna Bista, Colombo Process Chair in Office.
Mr. Bharat Raj Paudyal, Officiating Foreign Secretary of Nepal drew the delegates’ attention to the need of managed migration. Similarly, H.E. Mr. Deepak Dhital, Permanent Representative/ Ambassador of Nepal to the United Nations and other International Organization in Geneva updated on the progress of the Colombo Process.
In his inauguration remarks, Hon. Mr. Gokarna Bista highlighted that the longstanding agenda of the Colombo Process to promote safe migration is finally receiving increased attention globally and that ensuring human rights and well-being of the migrant workers has become a shared reality.
The Chair of the Senior Officials’ Meeting H.E. Mr. Mahesh Prasad Dahal, Secretary, Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security called on the Member States to collaborate on reducing the cost of migration, ensuring social security measures and labour rights of the migrant workers based on international standards and commitments of the Member States. Similarly, the Member States reviewed and finalized the draft Kathmandu Declaration. The respective Chairs of the thematic areas working groups also presented on the progress and achievements of their work.
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Kathmandu Declaration
Summary Report of the Fifth Senior Officials Meeting
