The case of Malawi is one of a developing country with severe health system problems and shortages of skilled workers that is seeking solutions through comprehensive training and retention strategies. Prior to 2004, Malawi had lost some 56% of its workers to HIV/AIDS and 40% through resignations or migration. This had seriously affected the delivery of health.
In 1990, under the patronage of King Hassan II, the Foundation for Moroccans Living Abroad was created to promote economic and cultural co-operation with the diaspora and to support them. This Foundation, in co-operation with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) established an Observatory of the Moroccan Community Living Abroad (EOMC), which offers an information system for the government on migration management issues.
ILO conducted three research studies on West, North and East African countries aimed at assisting governments and social partners to address the fundamental building blocks of effective policy and practice to regulate labour migration. Understanding that good policy depends on good data, this study assesses the current state of data collection and suggests specific measures to improve and harmonize collection and analysis of statistical data on labour migration and to more effectively use it in policy and administration.
This project was undertaken by the World Bank, the African Development Bank, the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) and the Africa Region and Development Prospects Group at the World Bank with the objective of examining the incidence and impacts of migration and remittances across sub-Saharan Africa, a region where relatively little is known about migration trends and the impact of remittances upon development.
The Migration Dialogue for West Africa or MIDWA was designed as a platform to encourage the Member States of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to discuss, in a regional context, such common migration issues and concerns for which immediate solutions may not be forthcoming at a national level. Its objective is to promote and ensure high quality cooperation among ECOWAS Member States, third countries and other international consultative forums on Free Movement and migration by:
The Economic Community Of West African States (ECOWAS) is a regional group of fifteen countries, founded in 1975. Its mission is to promote economic integration in "all fields of economic activity, particularly industry, transport, telecommunications, energy, agriculture, natural resources, commerce, monetary and financial questions, social and cultural matters .....".
ECOWAS has introduced the ECOWAS Passport and APEC has put in place an APEC-visa for certain categories of people to facilitate their movement in these groupings' member States.
The main objectives of Southern African Development Community (SADC) are to:
The Mediterranean Transit Migration (MTM) Dialogue is an inter-regional inter-governmental consultative forum of a wide number of EU, African, and other governments in the Meditteranean region, as well as observer States, and Partner Agecies, which aims to build common understandings and to jointly develop evidence-based comprehensive and sustainable migration management systems.
Banks can play a stronger role in keeping transfer fees low for migrants through the creation of special services with features that aid migrant’s remittance transfers. An example of such services are the joint checking accounts offered by the Moroccan Banque Populaire. Through their own branches and agreements with banks in European countries, migrants in Europe can make deposits into the account which can then be accessed by family members in Morocco.
The Government of Mauritius has established a multi-agency "Empowerment Programme", in order to, among other objectives, mount training and re-skilling programmes for the unemployed and to enhance Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) development. Established in 2006, the Programme has become today an important tool in efforts to reskill those who have lost jobs in declining sectors, to reintegrate those who are left behind and to prevent those on the periphery from sliding into poverty.