On the occasion of the 63rd World Health Assembly this week, the
Governments of Portugal and Spain organized a lunch seminar titled
"Health of Migrants, The Way Forward" on 17  May, supported by
the WHO and IOM.

The seminar briefed approximately 80 Member States  and
other stakeholders on the outcomes of the  March 3-5, 2010
Global Consultation on Migrant Health , convened by WHO  and
IOM and hosted by the Ministry of Health and Social Policy of the
Government of Spain. During the seminar, co-chairs Portugal and
Spain both highlighted their countries' proactive efforts to
address the issue of migrants' health, including putting the issue
on the agenda of the European Union during their respective EU
presidencies.  High level representatives of public health
agencies and ministries of health from key migration countries such
as Mexico, Canada and Bangladesh, participated in the panel and
discussed the health challenges faced by migrant-sending and
migrant receiving countries.

Members States and other stakeholders attending the seminar
stressed the need for the different countries linked by migration,
to work together and adjust their health policies and strategies
according to contemporary migration flows and increasingly diverse
societies. IOM Director General, William Lacy Swing, who attended
the event, emphasized that the debate on health-related aspects of
migrants needs to be part of major platforms of migration dialogues
such as the Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD) and
Regional Consultative Processes (RCPs). "Global and high level
advocacy, multi-sector partnerships and long-term commitment are
necessary to translate the spirit of the World Health Assembly
Resolution on Health of Migrants, into concrete results," Director
General Swing said.

For more information on the March 2010 Global Consultation on
Migrant Health see:
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"http://www.iom.int/jahia/Jahia/events/eventEU/cache/offonce?entryId=27105">http://www.iom.int/jahia/Jahia/events/eventEU/cache/offonce?entryId=27105

For further information, please contact:

Davide Mosca

Tel: +27 22 717 9251

E-mail: "mailto:dmosca@iom.int">dmosca@iom.int