Geneva—On Wednesday, 26 June 2019, the Council of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), decided by acclamation to extend the tenure of IOM’s Deputy Director General Laura Thompson pending a new selection process scheduled for Spring 2020. Ms. Thompson had been scheduled to finish her second of two five year-terms this coming September.

Member states—of which nearly 150 participated in the voting process—on Friday had begun the process of selecting a new Deputy Director General from among five candidates, each nominated by the home governments of Sudan, Bangladesh, The Philippines, Afghanistan and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. That process did not reach an agreement to select a winner under IOM’s required two-thirds majority of all votes cast.

Therefore, and to ensure continuity for this important role, the IOM Council decided to extend Ms. Thompson’s current mandate pending another election.

Established in 1951, IOM has over 11,000 staff and over 400 offices in more than 150 countries. IOM is the leading inter-governmental organization in the field of migration. It is committed to the principle that humane and orderly migration benefits migrants and society.

IOM works with its partners in the international community to assist in meeting the operational challenges of migration, advance understanding of migration issues, encourage social and economic development through migration and to uphold the well-being and human rights of all migrants.

IOM was granted permanent observer status to the UN General Assembly in 1992. A cooperation agreement between IOM and the UN was signed in 1996. IOM joined the UN system as a related organization in September 2016, when the agreement outlined in GA res.70/296 (2016) was signed during the UN Summit for Refugees and Migrants.

For further information please contact Leonard Doyle at IOM HQ, Tel: +41 792857123, Email:ldoyle@iom.int