Connectivity and Migration

In response to the migratory crisis that Colombia has experienced since 2015 due to the migratory flow from Venezuela. Taking into account the need that the Colombian State has to consolidate at the national level timely, and pertinent information on the characterization of the migrant population. Its situation of health, and access to health for the formulation, implementation, and monitoring of health care programs, strategies, and projects. The Ministry of Health, and Social Protection launched on December 2th, 2020 the National Observatory of Migration and Health.

This programme between the governments of India and the United Arab Emirates links the electronic emigration and immigration systems of the two respective governments, with the objective of reducing contract substitution and improving government oversight over recruitment practices. The process for implementation has been made available to other ADD Member States for replication, as well as to the wider GFMD community through the Platform for Partnerships.

At the beginning of 2020, at the proposal of Canada, the GFMD Steering Group endorsed the creation of a Hoc working Group on Public Narratives on Migration.

On the occasion of International Migrants’ Day, as part of a global call to Stand Up for Human Rights, the UN Human Rights Office launched in 2017 a series of animated videos to amplify the voices of migrants, the communities that welcome them and the conversations they have along the way. 

Together with the Philippines Overseas Employment Administration, ICMPD (under the MIEUX initiative) deployed this social marketing tool in attempting to influence the behaviour of different segments of the population (young people, students, women, would-be migrants, etc.) in relation to a campaign on trafficking and illegal recruitment. Social marketing campaigns are designed to influence the target group’s actions and adopt a new behaviour or change a current behaviour which affects the target group in a negative way.

Good communication can be a powerful tool in support of migrant integration. The “Communicating on Migrant Integration” website of the OECD Network of Communication Officers on Migration (NETCOM) makes available articles and good practice examples on the topic.

IOM, the UN Migration Agency, launched the MigrantApp (MigApp) in 2017, the first pilot of an IOM global initiative to provide information to facilitate regular, safe, and orderly migration using mobile devices.

Social innovation initiatives have been launched in many countries to find solutions to local challenges involving migrants, refugees and host communities in social entrepreneurship ventures.

Numerous programs empower young people to identify challenges in their communities and to create entrepreneurial solutions to address these barriers. Through a combination of training, mentorship and in some cases seed funding, youth learn transferable skills to become social innovators and entrepreneurs.

Some examples of these programs (see links below) are:

The IOM's 'I am a migrant' campaign is a platform to promote diversity and inclusion of migrants in society. It’s specifically designed to support volunteer groups, local authorities, companies, associations, groups, indeed, anyone of goodwill who is concerned about the hostile public discourse against migrants.

Visa for Music, a musical event held in Rabat, is the first professional platform gathering and federating artists of the music industry in Morocco, the Middle East, and Africa. The event provides a space for interprofessional music in Morocco for the countries of the South. Visa for Music Association works on the economy of arts, artistic mobility, and narratives on accepting others.