Namibia - As part of its capacity-building activities for strengthening migration management in Member States, IOM organized a training workshop on the essentials of migration management for the development of a Migration Profile in Namibia in Swakopmund, Namibia, on June 17-19.

IOM already has supported the production of over 50 Migration Profiles in all regions of the world, 17 of which are in Africa. Migration Profiles are country reports on the national migratory context, prepared in consultation with multiple stakeholders and aimed at designing strategies to address data gaps and inform evidence-based policymaking.

The workshop was organized by IOM’s Country Office in Namibia with support provided by IOM’s Regional Office in Pretoria, and with the participation of IOM’s Migration Research Division based in Geneva. Representatives of various Ministries – including the Ministry of the Interior and Home Affairs, Ministry of Labour, Ministry of Health and Social Services, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs – members of the Namibian Statistics Agency, and representatives from international organizations such as UNDP and UNHCR gathered to share experiences and learn more about Migration Profiles, migration data collection and management, as well as linkages between migration and development, including diaspora engagement.

Namibia experiences various migratory flows – notably given its geographical location as well as unforeseen shifts in the dynamics of migration in Southern Africa. It is a country of origin, transit and destination of migrants, but issues of data availability and lack of a coordinated approach to migration management between relevant agencies hinder the country’s capacity to understand its migration dynamics and design appropriate migration and development policies.

The workshop is part of a Migration Profile project currently being implemented in Namibia with the financial support of the IOM Development Fund following the Government’s request for assistance to develop a national Migration Profile. The project aims at promoting the mainstreaming of migration into the country’s development policies by enhancing the collection and use of migration data and promoting collaboration and data sharing between relevant Ministries and agencies. The first Migration Profile for Namibia is expected to be published early next year.

By including insights on trends and characteristics of migration in Namibia, the impact of migration on socio-economics, political and health aspects within the country, and existing governance frameworks, the Migration Profile will feed into initiatives currently in motion to enhance coordination within government on migration. It will also mark a stepping-stone towards the development of a comprehensive migration policy in Namibia, said Rafaelle Robelin, Head of IOM Namibia, during her introductory speech.

For further information please contact Rafaelle Robelin, Email: rrobelin@iom.int,  Mobile: +264 85 5233460 or Jo Rispoli, IOM South Africa, Tel: +27123422789 (Pretoria), Email: jrispoli@iom.int or Ida Baraghizadeh, IOM Namibia, Tel: +26461 231639 (Windhoek), Email:  ibaraghizadeh@iom.int