Bangladesh attaches increasing importance on migration
UNB
Recognising the value of migration in promoting development, Bangladesh has been attaching increasing importance to the issue of migration as an important foreign policy objective, reports UNB. Bangladesh has become a major emigrating country, with number emigrants living overseas accounting for 5.5 per cent of the population. The remittance from the migrants is bolstering macro economy as well as helping poverty alleviation in Bangladesh, said Bangladesh High Commissioner in Islamabad Tarik Ahsan on Friday. Bangladesh High Commission, Islamabad organised a session of discussion and exchange of views on Migration and Development: Contribution of Bangladesh to International Discourse at the Chancery in Islamabad.
Bangladesh is also hosting a significant number of migrant skilled workers who are mainly supporting the countrys booming readymade garments and knitwear industry.
The high commissioner presented a paper on the topic.
Chief Medical Officer of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Islamabad Dr AFM Risatul Islam; Senior Programme Coordinator of the same organization Junaid Arshad Khan and Counsellor (Political) of Bangladesh High Commission took part in the discussion, according to a message received here from Islamabad.
The diplomat said Bangladesh has been making efforts not just for expanding the job opportunities for its prospective emigrants or promoting it as a means for earning remittance but also for helping the international community to view migration from a broader perspective.
The goal is to establish migration as one of the key vehicles for sustainable development of the world in years to come.
He said in multilateral fora, Bangladesh has been vocal in favour of protection of the rights of migrants.
Bangladesh became a state party to the 49-member International Convention on the Rights of the Migrant Workers and Their Families by ratifying it in August 2011 and Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Md. Shahidul Haque is one of the 14 elected members of its treaty body called Committee on Migrant Workers.
Tarik Ahsan said in different regional and multilateral organizations, Bangladesh worked for mobilizing international opinion in favour of inclusion of the issue of migration in the Sustainable Development Goals.
The High Commissioner said Bangladesh believes that benefits of migration can be fully reaped in the long run only through its thoughtful management.
Bangladesh had proposed the idea of elaborating a Global Compact on Migration that would promote orderly, safe, regular and responsible migration.
The World leaders, on 19 September 2016 in New York, decided on elaboration of the Global Compact by the year 2018.
Tarik Ahsan apprised the audience on Bangladeshs chairmanship of the Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD) last year that culminated in the holding of 9thSummit of GFMD in Dhaka on 10-12 December 2016.
He underlined the contribution of Bangladesh chairmanship of GFMD to advancing the conceptual preparation forthe Global Compact on Migration.
The envoy affirmed that,as a member of Troika of GFMD during the joint chairmanship of GFMD by Germany and Morocco from 01 January this year, Bangladesh would continue to pro-actively support the cause of migration. The discussants from the IOM said the objectives of IOMs immigration and development programme is to contribute to a better understanding of the links between international migration and development in order to harness the development potential of migration for the benefit of both society and to contribute to sustainable development and poverty reduction.
