IN a bid to promote rights-based migration governance, the Arab Trade Union Confederation (ATUC) and the African Regional Organisation of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC-Africa) have moved to fashion-out implementable modalities to ensure the protection of migrant workers’ rights in order to contribute to sustainable development goals.
According to a communiqué issued at the end of the two-day brainstorming session of stakeholders drawn from unionists from Africa and the Arab regions, the discussions were dominated by ways in which unions can contribute to the achievement of rights-based migration governance that protects and fulfills migrant workers rights and contributes to sustainable development goals in both origin and destination countries.
The communiqué noted that the meeting achieved success as stakeholders unanimously identified and agreed to advance efforts on “Advocating to overcome adverse drivers of migration, including advocacy for deepening and expanding democratic spaces and for universal social protection as well as advocacy to end conflicts; organising migrant workers into unions both in countries of origin and destination; provision of services to migrant workers, such as through Migrant Resource Centres.”
Others are “Actively participating in migration governance processes concerning their regions to ensure social dialogue in all policy discussions and decisions, such as the Arab States-Africa Labour Migration Conference expected to be held later in 2023 and the Abu Dhabi Dialogue; continuing to work on fair recruitment practices through closer collaboration between unions in origin and destination countries, through expanding and utilizing the Migrant Recruitment Advisor platform; monitoring the implementation of bilateral labour migration agreements and production of advocacy and awareness raising materials; continuing to advocate for Just Transition to address the effects of climate change on workers and communities, including through a study on the effects of climate change on jobs and migration patterns in Africa and the Middle East.”
The communiqué further revealed that the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and the Just Transition Centre supported the meeting hosted by the General Union of Algerian Workers (UGTA).
Unionists from Bahrain, Kuwait, Lebanon and Jordan from the Middle East, Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco from North Africa and from Kenya, Nigeria and Ghana reiterated the importance of union solidarity and collaboration to uphold workers’ rights, to fight against xenophobia, hate crimes, racism and other attacks against migrants and to ensure fair recruitment practices for migrant workers, highlighting the particularly dire situation faced by women migrant workers, in particular domestic workers, and migrants in an irregular situation.
They affirmed the urgency to contribute to reversing conditions that push people to migrate out of necessity rather than choice and expose them to human and labour rights violations.
Alongside decent work gaps in origin countries, inequalities and poverty, they highlighted the role of climate change and conflict as push factors. They reiterated the importance of tripartite social dialogue to overcome these challenges.
Meanwhile, the ITUC-Africa and ATUC have been working together on rights-based migration governance through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) they signed in 2018, along with other regional union organisations.
The MOU was renewed in June 2023, with the joining of ITUC in the office and the presence of the Director-General of the International Labour Organisation, Mr Gilbert Houngbo.
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