Nepal - A panel of judges has chosen the grand prize winner in an IOM-EU sponsored migration themed photo contest. Mr. Sudipto Das of India took the grand prize, a Canon EOS D700 camera, for his photo titled “JOURNEY”, which represents Nepalese migrant workers travelling on top of a train from India back to Nepal to celebrate the festival of Bibaha Panchami in Janakpur.  The winning photo will be exhibited along with other highly commended entries at the Patan Museum from 19 to 22 December 2013.

The competition was open to entrants worldwide to submit their best photographs reflecting human rights and the well-being of Nepalese migrants, with the aim of raising public awareness of the experiences and challenges faced by Nepali migrants, their families and communities, and advocating for safe migration for all current and potential migrants inside and outside the country.

A total of 96 entries were submitted by 46 photographers including Nepali, Indian, Nigerian, Swiss, Polish, Bangladeshi, Japanese, German and Italian residents from five countries: Nepal, India, Nigeria, Switzerland and Poland. The entries were screened by a panel of judges that included well known photojournalists Gopal Chitrakar and Bikash Rauniyar; Lluis Navarro, Head of Cooperation at the EU Delegation to Nepal; Enora Marenne, Programme Manager at the EU Delegation to Nepal; Maurizio Busatti, Chief of Mission of IOM Nepal and Pravina Gurung, National Programme Officer of IOM Nepal.

“Many entries manage to depict Nepalese migrants’ lives in an intriguing and lively way and at the same time counter conventional stereotypical images of migrants,” said IOM Chief of Mission Busatti.

While labour migration has a significant economic impact on the country through remittances which are sent back home, migrants going overseas, especially through irregular migration channels, are vulnerable to exploitation due to poor working conditions and falling victim to human traffickers. In this regard, there has been a growing debate about the necessity of mainstreaming migration in the global development agenda.

"The photo contest and the subsequent exhibition on 'migrant workers' will hopefully bring about much needed awareness among the general public, prospective migrants and above all the policy makers and those working for the welfare of Nepali migrants to devise a comprehensive plan of action to make migration more safe and rewarding," said Rensje Teerink, Ambassador, Head of the European Union Delegation to Nepal.

The competition was organized by IOM Nepal and the EU delegation to Nepal as part of a project on strengthening labour migration management capacities in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Nepal and the Philippines, which is being supported by the European Union through a financial contribution of EUR 1.6 million.

For more information please contact

Ken Matsueda
Communication Officer
IOM Nepal
Tel: +977 1 4426250
Email: kmatsueda@iom.int