2006 UN Meetings on International Migration

ISSUE 61 - 30 March 2006

International migration and development will be one of the key issues on the agenda of the United Nations this year.

The UN has over the years grappled with the challenge of how to address international migration in a way acceptable to both sending and receiving countries. There is acknowledgment that international migration brings benefits as well as challenges to the global community. Some of these challenges are a result of the growing feminization of migration and the vulnerability that women are exposed to in the context of migration.

The negative impact of migration on public health systems and availability of skilled health personnel in developing countries is another major challenge especially for the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD).

The meetings scheduled in the UN, including the Commission on Population and Development (CPD) and the High Level Dialogue on International Migration and Development, offer an opportunity to discuss the multidimensional aspects of international migration and development.

This issue of the UNFPA Global Population Policy Update will highlight the intergovernmental meetings that will focus on the interlinkages between international migration and development. It also provides an update of the five-year review of the UN General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on HIV/AIDS.

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2006 UN Meetings on International Migration

On 3-7 April 2006, the 39th Session of the Commission on Population and Development (CPD) will take up the theme of international migration and development at UN headquarters in New York. At this meeting, the report of the Secretary General on monitoring of population programmes with regard to international migration and development will be considered. The report is expected to address the issues of the rights of undocumented migrants, remittances, migration of health workers as well as short-term and seasonal workers.

In July 2006, the President of the General Assembly (GA) is expected to hold informal interactive hearings with representatives of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), civil society organizations (CSOs) and the private sector on the issue of migration. The summary of the hearings will be submitted to the High-Level Dialogue on International Migration and Development (14-16 September, New York).

On 6 September 2006, a week before the High-Level Dialogue, UNFPA will launch the State of World Population Report and a youth version of the same report on the theme of international migration and women.

On 14-16 September 2006, the High-Level Dialogue on International Migration and Development will be held at UN headquarters in New York. The high-level dialogue will consist of four plenary meetings and four interactive round tables.

• Round table 1 will focus on the effects of international migration on economic and social development;
• Round table 2 will focus on measures to ensure respect for and protection of the human rights of all migrants, and to prevent and combat smuggling of migrants and trafficking in persons;
• Round table 3 will focus on the multidimensional aspects of international migration and development, including remittances and;
• Round table 4 will focus on promoting partnerships and capacity-building and the sharing of best practices at all levels, including bilateral and regional levels.

The High-Level Dialogue is not expected to adopt an outcome document but it will produce a Chairperson's summary.

UN General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS

On 31 May - 1 June 2006, the UNGASS on HIV/AIDS will undertake a comprehensive review of the progress achieved in realizing the targets set out in the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS adopted by the GA in June 2001. On 2 June 2006, a high-level meeting will be convened, with a view to continuing the engagement of world leaders in a comprehensive global response to HIV/AIDS. The review meeting will comprise plenary meetings, an informal interactive hearing with civil society, panel discussions and round tables. The civil society hearing will be chaired by the President of the GA or his representative and organized with the active participation of people living with HIV/AIDS and representatives of civil society. It will be attended by representatives of NGOs in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council, invited CSOs, the private sector, Member States and observers.

All previous issues of the UNFPA Global Population Policy Update can now be found on UNFPA's website at: http://www.unfpa.org/parliamentarians/news/newsletters.htm .

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This newsletter is issued by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in its capacity as secretariat for the biennial International Parliamentarians' Conference on the Implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action (IPCI/ICPD). The first IPCI/ICPD was held in November 2002 in Ottawa, Canada and the second in October 2004 in Strasbourg, France. These dispatches are intended to highlight important developments taking place around the world so that parliamentarians can be kept informed of and learn from the successes, setbacks and challenges encountered by their fellow parliamentarians in other countries and regions in their efforts to promote the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (September 1994, Cairo, Egypt). It should be noted that UNFPA does not necessarily endorse all of the policies described in this newsletter.

Please send mailing list update information to Ragaa Said at said@unfpa.org . If you have any questions or comments on the content of this newsletter, please contact Harumi Kodama at kodama@unfpa.org or Safiye Cagar at cagar@unfpa.org .