Egypt - IOM and the League of Arab States (LAS) hosted the Chairs and Secretariats of worldwide Regional Consultative Processes on Migration (RCPs) at the Fifth Global RCP Meeting on 21-22 of October 2015 in Cairo.

The meeting, at the LAS HQ, included the official launch of the Arab Regional Consultative Process (ARCP), which will bring together the 22 Arab States and will serve as a platform to enhance cooperation and a more profound understanding of migration issues in the region. The LAS will act as its secretariat.

Over 70 high level officials representing Chairs and Secretariats of 15 RCPs from around the world, together with experts from intergovernmental and regional organizations, attended the Cairo meeting, which came at a critical time for migration in the Middle East and North Africa. Arab countries are seriously affected by the complex migration crises in the region.

Delegates reviewed key developments on the global migration landscape and explored pressing migration governance issues, including the protection of human rights of migrants, saving and protecting migrant lives at sea and on land, forced migration due to climate change, environmental degradation and political instability, and the plight of migrants in countries in crisis.

Building on the outcomes of the fourth global meeting of RCPs in Lima in May 2013, the theme of the meeting was Exploring Contemporary Migration Challenges: Reflecting on the Outcomes of the 2013 High Level Dialogue on International Migration and Development and the Post-2015 Development Agenda.  The role of RCPs in implementing and reviewing the migration-related targets in the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals were discussed in depth.

For three decades, RCPs have developed across most regions of the globe to address the growing challenges of international migration governance. Today, 18 RCPs operate actively, with more than 160 countries belonging to at least one RCP. Initiated and driven by States, they serve as important platforms for international and regional dialogue and cooperation.

IOM Director General Ambassador William Lacy Swing, speaking at the meeting, said: “At a time when the international community is facing multiple migration crises in all regions of the world, RCPs play an increasingly important role in fostering mutual understanding and collaboration between countries of origin, transit and destination. They help ensure coherence in policy and practice. This biennial meeting of all principal RCPs is a unique opportunity for them to exchange best practices and develop mechanisms for collaboration.”

Ambassador Badre Eddine Allali, Assistant Secretary General and Head of the Social Affairs Sector of the League of Arab States, said: “The General Secretariat of the League of Arab States, based on the belief in the ability of collective action to solve problems, is seeking to find solutions to the challenges facing the region in the area of migration through the creation of coordination mechanisms, both with its member states and with regional and international organizations working in the field of migration in the region. The Arab Regional Consultative Process on migration (ARCP), which we are launching today, is among these.”

For further information, please contact Meera Sethi at IOM HQ in Geneva, Email: msethi@iom.int or Amina El Sheibany at LAS in Cairo, Email: aemigrant.dept@las.int