IOM, in partnership with the UN Country Team and the Thai Ministry
of Labour will on 8th December co-host a Development Cooperation
Seminar in Bangkok to prepare Thailand for the free movement of
skilled professionals within the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) by
2015.

The seminar, Towards and Beyond ASEAN 2015: Labour Mobility and
its Implications for Thailand, aims to deliver recommendations on
the development of an action plan to help Thailand to prepare for
the labour market liberalization.

The event, which will be addressed by the Permanent Secretary of
the Thai Ministry of Labour and a senior European Union
representative, will focus on seven sectors prioritized by ASEAN
– accounting, architecture, engineering, surveying, medical,
nursing and dental services.

"The seminar will look at how Thailand can best assess the
potential costs and benefits of labour mobility in ASEAN, overcome
the barriers to implementation, ensure synergy between labour and
ancillary policies, and look towards the future prospects for
increased levels of labour mobility in the region," says IOM
Thailand Chief of Mission Monique Filsnoel.

The AEC blueprint, adopted in 2007, was designed to liberalize
flows of goods, investment, capital, services and skilled labour in
ASEAN, following the successful model developed by the European
Union over the past 60 years.

For more information please contact:

Claudia Natali

IOM Bangkok

Tel: +66 2 343 9354

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