United States - On the eve of the 2nd UN High Level Dialogue on International Migration and Development, IOM Director General William Lacy Swing will make an official visit to Washington, D.C. where he will meet with Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS) José Miguel Insulza and speak at the OAS Lecture Series of the Americas.

As the keynote speaker of the OAS Lecture Series, Ambassador Swing will brief OAS member states and official representatives on recent migration trends and why centering the debate on making migration a positive factor for development is important for the well-being of migrants.

Ambassador Swing will discuss migration on a global scale, with a particular focus on migration in the Americas.  One example is the recent increase in Latin America and the Caribbean of arrivals associated with the economic crisis, with top countries of origin being Spain (48,000), Germany (21,000), Netherlands (17,000), and Italy (16,000).  The presentation will include challenges, new trends, and IOM recommendations from the World Migration Report 2013.

While in Washington, D.C., Ambassador Swing will also visit Gallup World Headquarters to present IOM’s World Migration Report 2013: Migrant Well-being and Development.

The World Migration Report 2013 (WMR) draws on the findings from a Gallup World Poll conducted in 150 countries that contain more than 98 per cent of the world’s adult population.  The poll, which surveyed over 25,000 migrants, makes it possible to take a fresh look at what life is really like for migrants in the world today.  The report investigates how migration leads to or does not lead to a better life, finally giving migrants their own voice.

Migration and its linkages to development have become an increasingly important policy issue and will further gain prominence in a number of forthcoming policy forums, especially 2nd United Nations High Level Dialogue on Migration and Development (HLD).

The HLD, to be held on 3-4 October in New York, will address pressing needs to reduce the negative consequences of migration and develop concrete strategies for harnessing the benefits of migration for migrants and for fostering development for countries.  IOM’S WMR 2013 contributes to current policy forums seeking to understand how migration’s benefits can be best harnessed for development.

Ambassador Swing will encourage all countries to collect data on migration-related indicators to better understand migrants’ well-being, and to allow IOM to support them in the post-2015 UN development agenda discussions.

The OAS Lecture Series of the Americas will take place on September 30th at 11.00 am EST at the Hall of the Americas on 17th St. & Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, D.C., 20006.

The presentation of the WMR 2013 with Gallup will be held on September 30 at 2.00 pm EST at Gallup World Headquarters on 901 F St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20004.

The WMR 2013 full report and press kit can be downloaded from: www.iom.int/cms/wmr2013.

For more information, please contact

Niurka Pineiro
IOM Washington, D.C.
Tel: + 1 202 684 0559
Email: NPineiro@iom.int