On 17 and 18 of September 2019, the United Republic of Tanzania, in collaboration with IOM, and with the support of the United States Department of State Bureau for Population, Refugees, and Migration (BPRM), hosted the 9^th Regional Technical Meeting (RTM) on Mixed Migration in the East and Horn of Africa region.

Countries agreed to strengthen migrant protection, migration data management and whole of government approach on migration management using national coordination mechanisms on migration (NCMs).

They also agreed to establish information sharing systems between national authorities, as well as to enhance community participation in work addressing mixed migration.

Government experts from Djibouti, Ethiopia, Somalia and the United Republic of Tanzania attended the two-day deliberations to share best practices, challenges encountered, and how to handle mixed migration in the region. 

The government led dialogue also considered ways of implementing set commitments to migrant protection by line ministries, as well as ways to foster collaboration on cross border mixed migration by key stakeholders such as the African Union (AU), UNICEF, and UNHCR.

In his opening remarks, on behalf of the government of the United Republic of Tanzania, the Director General for National Identification Authority (NIDA), Dr. Arnold Kihaule, expressed appreciation to IOM for supporting the meeting and for bringing together experts working on mixed migration flows from different jurisdictions to share experiences.

“The Africa Regional Migration Programme (ARMP) continues to prioritize support to governments in target countries, with the eventual goal of institutionalizing migration governance approaches. This highlights the important role of government within the program and the extent to which continued commitments can influence and improve coherence in national and regional migration governance,” said Dr. Qasim Sufi, IOM Tanzania Chief of Mission.

Mr Justin MacDermott, IOM Deputy Regional Director for East and Horn of Africa, highlighted the impact that continued support by BPRM has had in addressing protection needs of the most vulnerable, and in strengthening migration management over the past nine years.

The regional consultative dialogue is an annual event of the ARMP East and Horn of Africa sub-component, and recommendations have historically fed into project activities.

For more information, please contact:

Heba Abdellatif, IOM Ethiopia. Email: habdellatif@iom.int Tel: +251 983858655.

David Hofmeijer, IOM Tanzania  Email: dhofmeijer@iom.int Tel: +255 699 674 975, or Andrew William Email: wandrew@iom.int Tel: +255 754 663 910.