Costa Rica - IOM today launched a new online course Women in Migration – a tool to allow the study of challenges faced by migrant women in the Mesoamerican region. The course is available for free through IOM’s Migration Learning Platform in Spanish.

The course describes how women participate in the migratory dynamics of Central America. It covers the challenges facing migrant girls, female heads of household and workers in the region, the specific risks they face when migrating, and the need to provide them with protection and assistance.

“This course is another opportunity for learning that we can make available to government authorities, public institutions, civil society organizations and the general public interested in the study of the migration of women,” said Alexandra Bonnie, regional coordinator of IOM’s Mesoamerican Program.

The course was launched by IOM to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women as a contribution from the IOM Mesoamerica Program to raise awareness of the situation of migrant women in the region.

Mesoamerica represents one of the largest migration corridors in the world and is a region of origin, transit, and destination for thousands of women and girls whose survival strategy is often based on the hope of finding better opportunities beyond their communities of origin.

According to recent IOM studies, women represent approximately 53 percent of the total Central American migrant population. Violence against women is a major characteristic of female migration in the region and includes femicide, trafficking and sexual violence.

The IOM Migration Learning Platform also offers free online courses on other IOM areas of work, including trafficking, human rights, unaccompanied minors, asylum seekers and refugees.

The initiative is part of the IOM Mesoamerica Regional Program, which aims to strengthen the capacities of governments and civil society organizations to improve protection and assistance to migrants in vulnerable situations. The Mesoamerica Regional Program is funded by the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration of the US State Department.

Access the Women in Migration course here:  http://plataformadeaprendizaje.iom.int/

For more information about the Mesoamerica Program go here: http://programamesoamerica.iom.int/es

For further information, please contact Alexandra Bonnie at IOM Costa Rica, Tel: +506 22125321, Email: abonnie@iom.int