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Statement by Tobias Billström at the third meeting of the Global For..
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Datum nieuwsfeit: 04-11-2009 |
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Bron: Swedish Presidency of the European Union |
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Swedish Presidency of the European Union
Speeches
Statement by Tobias Billström at the third meeting of the Global Forum on
Migration and Development
Statement on behalf of the European Union by Tobias Billström,
Minister for Migration and Asylum Policy, Sweden at the third meeting
of the Global Forum on Migration and Development Athens, Greece, 4
November 2009.
- CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY -
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union. I would
like to begin by thanking Greece for their generosity in hosting the
third meeting of the Global Forum on Migration and Development. I
would also like to take this opportunity to commend the UN Secretary
General's Special Representative for Migration, Peter Sutherland, for
his instrumental role throughout the Global Forum process.
The EU strongly believes that there is a clear need for an
international platform for States to discuss issues related to
migration and development. The Global Forum provides the open-ended,
State-owned, consultative and non-decision making forum that allows
for an open and transparent dialogue and exchange of good practices
among States in this area.
The overarching theme of this year's Global Forum, "Integrating
Migration Policies into Development Strategies for the Benefit of
All," is very timely and important. The three round table themes of
the Global Forum-meeting in Athens are all pertinent to the
discussion.
The issue of migration and development remains high on the EU's policy
agenda. The EU recognises that migration, if managed effectively, can
have a positive impact on the achievement of the Millennium
Development Goals. The inclusion of migration in development planning
requires building genuine partnerships among countries of origin,
transit, and destination, based on principles of solidarity and shared
responsibility. In recent years, the EU has made significant progress
in this respect. The EU's Global Approach to Migration was adopted in
2005 and provides an important framework for EU's external policy in
this regard.
The EU recognises that also during an economic downturn, well-managed
global migration should be viewed as part of the solution, rather than
as part of the problem. It is important to continue to cooperate on
issues related to migration and development. Migration policies can
make economies more efficient by ensuring that the rights skills are
available in the right places at the right time.
When we discuss migration and its development effects, it is important
that we recognise that the patterns of migration are changing, partly
as a consequence of today's increasingly globalised labour market. The
old paradigm of migration for permanent settlement is increasingly
giving way to both shorter-term as well as repeat migration as a
livelihood strategy for many migrants. In this context, we must
realise that a significant development potential could be realised
through the facilitation of voluntary return and reintegration, as
well as temporary and circular migration. Increased mobility of
migrants could promote development in countries of origin, serve the
labour market needs of countries of destination, and benefit migrants
themselves insofar as they acquire new contacts, knowledge and skills
while abroad.
The EU acknowledges that several policy areas are relevant to the
migration-development nexus, including foreign policy, human rights,
peace keeping and conflict prevention, finance, trade, employment,
health and education, environment and climate change. There is a need
for increased policy coherence at national, regional and international
levels in order to increase the positive development impact of
migration. Indeed, policy and institutional coherence is the
foundation for the discussions within the Global Forum.
One of the major goals of the Global Forum is to frame issues of
mutual concern and share lessons learned regarding the
multidimensional aspects of migration and development. In this
context, we need to ensure that the focus of the discussion continue
to be on issues related to migration and development.
The EU strongly believes that the Global Forum should continue to be a
State-owned process and that it should remain an informal policy
dialogue for senior officials. We have all agreed to maintain a loose
structure for the Global Forum, which the EU supports. It is important
that the preparatory process for the Global Forum continue to be open,
transparent and inclusive. The EU supports the involvement of civil
society in the Global Forum-process, as well as the
cross-fertilisation between the meeting of States and the meeting of
representatives from civil society. However, we believe that the
Global Forum should draw on the expertise of civil society without
altering the state-led character of the Global Forum-process.
The EU welcomes the scheduled meetings of the Global Forum and
acknowledges the generosity of the offers from future hosts. Mexico
will be next, in 2010, Spain in 2011 and Morocco in 2012.
The EU is determined to continue its commitment and support to the
Global Forum-process and encourages the active engagement from all
states. We should all remember that we are responsible for the
continued success of the Global Forum.
Thank you.
Published
04 November
10:30
Council
Justice and Home Affairs
Location
Athens, Greece
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