Switzerland - IOM and the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) Monday convened an inter-agency roundtable on processing and managing data on missing refugees and migrants.

The day-long event, held at ICMP’s headquarters in The Hague, brought together more than a dozen agencies and government representatives.

According to IOM, as of 13 December, 4,732 irregular migrants have been drowned or have gone missing trying to cross the Mediterranean in 2016, compared to 3,601 in the whole of 2015.

There are no complete figures on migrant fatalities on routes from sub-Saharan Africa to the Mediterranean coast, but the number who perish at the hands of people traffickers or because of harsh terrain may exceed maritime deaths. At the same time, large numbers go missing on migration routes in South Asia and between South and North America.

ICMP’s Identification Data Management System (iDMS) makes it possible to collect, store, and share personal data on missing persons efficiently and securely. This is central to the process of locating and identifying the large numbers of persons who are missing as a result of migration.

The iDMS makes it possible to bring together all of the disparate elements in investigations that span different countries and continents, different time periods and different social, cultural and legal environments. It is accessible from anywhere in the world via the Online Inquiry Center (OIC). Currently, the OIC can be accessed in English, Arabic, Spanish, Albanian, and Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian. ICMP plans to add more languages in due course.

On 2 December, IOM convened a conference in Berlin on improving data on international migration. At the conference, the European Commission's Knowledge Centre on Migration and Demography (KCMD) launched a Migration Data Catalogue and a Dynamic Data Hub, designed to centralize migration-related data, facilitating a better understanding of migration flows.

“We believe that the iDMS and the OIC can play a key role in a coordinated inter-agency response to the migration crisis,” ICMP Director-General Kathryne Bomberger told the conference. “Data systems can help national and international agencies and families of the missing in countries neighboring conflict areas such as Iraq and Syria, as well as help European authorities to identify the remains of drowned migrants, as well as migrants who go missing after their arrival in Europe.”

“Human mobility is a megatrend that is certain to continue. This is in large part a function of population growth. The 20th century marked the first time in recorded history that the global population quadrupled within a human lifetime, a phenomenon unlikely to occur again,” said IOM Director General William Lacy Swing. “Other drivers of migration include labour shortages and demands; growing North–South economic and social disparities; the digital revolution; distance-shrinking technologies; personal dreams and ambitions; and persistent disasters – whether these are induced by wars or natural disasters.”

In addition to ICMP and IOM, presentations at the conference were given by representatives of INTERPOL, Europol, the International Criminal Court, ICRC, UNHCR, UNICEF, EUROJUST and the European Commission. The Dutch Foreign Ministry was also represented.

In March 2013, ICMP and IOM concluded a cooperation agreement focusing on joint efforts to address the issue of missing persons from migration, displacement, human trafficking and other causes.

For further information please contact Joel Millman at IOM HQ in Geneva, Tel: +41 79 103 8720, Email: jmillman@iom.int