A first group of nearly 500 Peruvians are this week regularizing
their migration status in Ecuador under the first phase of a
regularization programme offered by the Ecuadorian government.

The 499 Peruvians living in the provinces of Azuay,
Cañar, El Oro and Loja are being regularized as part of a
reciprocity agreement for the "Regularization of the Labour and
Migratory Status of Ecuadorian and Peruvian Nationals in the Border
Region," which also benefits Ecuadorians residing in
Peru. 

The second phase will kick off in 2008 and run through
2009.  The regularization programme does not provide permanent
residence, but grants participants a work permit, which means they
cannot be deported or exploited by unscrupulous employers, and
allows them to enjoy the same rights as Ecuadorian workers.

The agreement is estimated to ultimately regularize some 30,000
Peruvians and Ecuadorians living in the border region.

Although Ecuador is a country of origin for migrants travelling
to North America and Europe, the number of migrants arriving in
Ecuador in search of better opportunities, particularly from Peru
and Colombia, has increased in the past five years.

Migrants from these neighbouring countries cross into Ecuador to
find jobs which are paid in US dollars, the legal tender in
Ecuador.  Peruvian migrants in Ecuador work mainly in the
agriculture, construction and domestic service sectors.

Ecuador's immigration authorities report that between January
2001 and March 2007 721,666 Peruvians entered the country. 
Their records indicate that during the same period 402,261 left the
country, implying that 319,405 stayed.

"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is applying the principle of
not criminalizing the migrant, which is a cornerstone of this
government's migration policy," says Alejandro Guidi, IOM's Chief
of Mission in Ecuador.

At the request of National Secretariat for Migrants and the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the IOM office in Ecuador has
participated in the planning of the regularization process and is a
key actor in the implementation of the programme, providing
technical assistance and guidance with funding from IOM's 1035
Facility.

The funding will provide technical support for the design and
implementation of an information campaign and conferences, and will
facilitate the registration process, as well as pay for a study of
minors who are victims of labour exploitation in Ecuador. 

The 1035 Facility provides special support to IOM developing
Member States and Member States with economies in transition for
the development and implementation of joint government-IOM projects
to address particular areas of migration management.  Since
its inception in 2001, the Facility has supported over 140 projects
in various fields and has benefited over 80 Member States.

For further information please contact:

Ana María Guzmán

IOM Ecuador

Telephone: +593-2-22-53-948/49

E-mail: "mailto:aguzman@oim.org.ec">aguzman@oim.org.ec