Louise Arbour

Although some people believe migrants arrive in countries to “steal” local jobs and take advantage of social services, these perceptions are not based in reality.

That’s the opinion of the UN Special Representative for International Migration, Louise Arbour, citing data showing the economic benefits these workers bring to the countries where they’ve settled and their own homelands.

The international community is in the process of devising a global agreement that fosters safe, regular and orderly migration, to be adopted next year.

Governments now understand that their national migration policies cannot work unless they fit into an international model.

That’s the message from the UN Special Representative for International Migration, Louise Arbour.

Over the past year, she has been overseeing regional negotiations that will lead to the adoption of a Global Compact for Migration in 2018.

The agreement seeks to bring about safe, orderly and regular migration, in addition to addressing related challenges.

The world has every interest in managing migration better, given the expanding global population and the huge increase in people on the move.

This message was underlined by Louise Arbour, the UN Special Representative for International Migration, who is in Beirut, Lebanon, to address pressing issues related to the movement of people in the Arab region.

Experts gathered midweek at the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) to identify ways of supporting the most vulnerable migrants.

Allowing families who receive cash from migrants working overseas access to reliable financial services, is “a low-hanging fruit” which would boost sustainable development.

That’s the view of Louise Arbour, the UN Special Representative for International Migration.

She was speaking at the Fourth Informal Thematic Session on the global compact for safe, orderly and regular migration, taking place at UN Headquarters, on Monday and Tuesday.

Matt Wells has more.

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