IOM will co-host a forum on increased mobility of skilled labour in
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Thursday and
Friday (28 and 29/6) this week in Bangkok.

The event will be jointly organized with the Thai Ministry of
Labour, the AEM-METI Economic and Industrial Cooperation Committee
(comprising ASEAN and the Japanese Ministry for Economy, Trade and
Industry), and the ASEAN Secretariat.

In 2015 the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) will become a reality
and will transform the ASEAN region, with free movement of goods,
services, investment, skilled labour, and the freer flow of
capital.

To enhance regional integration, the ASEAN Economic Blueprint
explicitly addresses the need for increased mobility of persons
through its provision for liberalized flows of skilled labour.

This in turn has implications for a range of related national
regulations and practices, including visa regulations, investment
requirements, welfare entitlements and pension funds.

The upcoming forum, which will bring together senior officials
from ten ASEAN member states,  follows a successful
development cooperation seminar: Towards and Beyond ASEAN 2015:
Labour Mobility and its Implications for Thailand, hosted by the
Thai Ministry of Labour and the UN Country Team for Thailand in
December 2010.

For more information, please contact

Claudia Natali

IOM Bangkok

Tel. +66.2.343 9354

Email: "mailto:cnatali@iom.int">cnatali@iom.int