An IOM-managed Labour Migration Centre, opening today in the border
town of Beitbridge, will facilitate the flow of seasonal migrant
workers to South Africa and reduce the risks associated with
irregular migration.

The opening of the Centre follows the signing of a Memorandum of
Understanding between the governments of Zimbabwe and South Africa
aimed at strengthening cooperation and promoting safe and orderly
labour migration between both countries.

The facility will be housed at the IOM Beitbridge Reception and
Support Centre, which opened in 2006 and has provided humanitarian
assistance to more than 314,000 Zimbabwean returnees.

The new Labour Migration Centre, in partnership with the
Zimbabwean Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare and the South
African Department of Labour, is part of a pilot project which will
match an estimated 5,000 Zimbabwean job seekers with the labour
needs of five commercial farms in South Africa.

Zimbabweans wishing to participate will register with their
District Labour Centre and their profiles will be sent to the IOM
database in Beitbridge. Custom designed software will match their
applications with the labour needs of the South African
farmers.

The selected candidates will undergo medical screenings and will
be interviewed by the prospective employers. Once selected, labour
migrants will receive passports and work permits allowing them to
travel and reside in South Africa for the duration of their
contracts.

"This pilot project comes at a critical time when South Africa
has announced a special dispensation permit for Zimbabweans wanting
to work in South Africa, and is in line with IOM's efforts to
strengthen cooperation and support organized labour migration
between the two countries," explains Marcelo Pisani, IOM Chief of
Mission in Zimbabwe

Since 2008 IOM has been implementing a cross border labour
migration project to facilitate the temporary and safe migration of
Zimbabwean farm workers to the Limpopo Province of South
Africa.

The Labour Migration Centre and the pilot project are supported
by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida),
the IOM 1035 Facility which provides support to IOM Developing
Member States and Member States with Economy in Transition, and by
the International Labour Organization, which provided the
information technology.

For additional information please contact:

Judith Chinamaringa

IOM Zimbabwe

Tel: 011885266

E-mail: "mailto:jchinamaringa@iom.int">jchinamaringa@iom.int