Towards a Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration - A Regional Perspective

Migration has been increasingly in the spotlight of public and political debate. The surge in the scale of movements and loss of life of migrants – both in Europe and in other parts of the world – has raised questions about the adequacy of the existing national and international tools to deal with migration-related challenges.

On 19 September 2016 the General Assembly of the United Nations for the first time addressed these issues at a High-Level Plenary Meeting on Addressing Large Movements of Refugees and Migrants (A/71/L.34). The High-Level Meeting culminated in the adoption of the New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants that launched a process of intergovernmental negotiations aimed at the adoption of a Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration in 2018.

The Global Compact for Migration would set out a range of common principles and commitments among Member States regarding international migration in all its dimensions. As such, it would make an important contribution to global governance and enhance coordination on international migration. The development and negotiations of the Global Compact for Migration is an ambitious undertaking, which will dominate the migration policy agenda in the next two years. Success can only be achieved in the spirit of partnership and open dialogue among States, international organizations, civil society, migrants and diaspora organizations, academia, and the private sector.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) –the UN migration agency, tasked to service the negotiations for the Global Compact on Migration together with the UN Secretariat- will be a key player in the current and future debate on migration governance. On the other hand, the OSCE, being the largest regional security organization under Chapter VIII of the UN Charter, can offer a regional perspective in the overall discussion, considering that the principles contained in the Compact echo significantly the mandate of the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) in the field of migration governance.

Building on the long-standing cooperation between the two organizations, on the occasion of the 2016 International Migrants’ Day, IOM and OSCE are convening a meeting to discuss future steps and challenges in view of the adoption of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration. 

Taking advantage of the respective roles and perspectives in addressing migration-related challenges, the IOM Regional Office for South-Eastern Europe, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and Mission to the UN and other Vienna-based International Organizations, and the OSCE will jointly invite delegations of the participating States to the OSCE, specialists in the area of migration governance, think-tanks, academia and research entities, selected civil society representatives and International Organizations, including OSCE Executive Structures, to actively participate in an  interactive discussion, paving the way to enhanced action-oriented cooperation. 

The two Organizations will jointly produce the proceedings of the event.

The working language will be English and Russian.

At the margins of the event, short films on migration will be screened in the framework of the Global Migration Film Festival opening on 5 December and culminating on 18 December 2016, the International Migrants’ Day. The festival is an opportunity to celebrate the diversity and unique contributions of migrants to the communities where they live as well as a tribute to the many films that capture the opportunities and challenges of migration The Festival is part of the UN Secretary General's “Together” global campaign to promote diversity and inclusion of migrants.

Discussions on Twitter at @OSCE or using hashtag #OSCEmigration.