Mr. Chairperson,

First of all, allow me to congratulate you and the other members
of the Bureau on your election.

Mr. Chairperson, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and
Gentlemen,

On behalf of the International Organization for Migration (IOM),
I would like to convey our appreciation for the opportunity to
address the forty-fifth session of the Commission for Social
Development on its priority theme: Promoting Full Employment and
Decent Work for All. In my statement, I will focus on three issues:
first, I will refer to the contribution that managed labour
migration can bring to achieving full employment and decent work; I
will then turn to the conditions of a particular group of migrants
mentioned in the Secretary-General’s report, namely
indigenous people; and finally I will briefly refer to the issue of
youth migration.   

Regarding the first issue: IOM welcomes the attention to
international migration reflected in the Report of the
Secretary-General. We share the broad analysis of the positive and
negative impact on social integration exerted by migration. They
have been widely discussed including the inputs submitted by the
Commission last September at the High-Level Dialogue on Migration
and Development, where a large consensus has emerged on the
willingness of all concerned actors to work together in order to
maximize the benefits and minimize the negative consequences of
migration. IOM is committed to assist States and other players in
this effort, based on the assumption that social integration of
migrants is beneficial not only to migrants themselves, but also to
the hosting community, and is a powerful tool to foster
development.

But the relevance of migration in the debate on full employment
and decent work for all goes beyond the issue of migrants’
integration. In an increasingly globalized world, with almost 200
million migrants, we believe that the concept of a global labour
market needs to be considered, if we want to fully understand the
dynamics of national labour markets.

Despite the absence of an international regime regulating
movement of workers, it is a fact that many countries, especially
in the industrialized world, rely very heavily on foreign workers
to fill in important gaps in the national workforce. Bilateral
agreements have represented so far the most effective response to
those requirements. However their inadequacy is attested by the
growing human suffering caused by the most exploitative forms of
irregular migration, smuggling and trafficking of human beings.
While bilateral agreements will continue to play an important role,
we are assisting to promising efforts to bring the issue to its
regional and inter-regional dimension.

IOM is supporting ongoing efforts in this direction and is
currently elaborating, together with other international
organizations and interested governments, the concept of an
International Migration and Development Initiative (IMDI) which we
believe would contribute, inter alia, to broadening the terms of
the debate on the concept of a global labour market.

Mr. Chairperson,

It is particularly appropriate, in our views, for the
Secretary-General’s report to pay attention to the specific
challenges and opportunities linked to the full inclusion of
indigenous people in the labour market, and to the increasing
reliance on migration as a coping mechanism in this respect. 
As the Secretary-General’s report points out, pervasive
poverty may compel indigenous peoples to leave their ancestral
domains and communities to seek employment opportunities, and
because of lack of skills in the formal economy, indigenous
migrants may be vulnerable to exploitation, trafficking and a
general lack of integration in the host community.  Migration
into the labour market for some indigenous communities may go
beyond social and economic impacts, but also strain cultural
ties. 

We must look not just at the challenges of the full inclusion of
indigenous peoples in the labour market, but also at the
opportunities.  In April 2006, IOM co-organized with the
Secretariat of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues an expert
workshop on indigenous peoples and migration which addressed some
potential opportunities of labour migration for indigenous
peoples.  The community organization of many indigenous
peoples may help cultivate the impact of remittances and may also
aid in the transfer of skills circulation throughout the entire
community thus enhancing their inclusion into the global labour
market.  When they migrate out of their communities,
indigenous peoples can promote their indigenous social and cultural
capital in their destination countries or communities, at the same
time furthering attention to, and knowledge and interest in,
indigenous peoples.  Recognizing the particularities of
indigenous peoples’ migration and their difficulties in
inclusion of the labour market, IOM supports numerous indigenous
communities by systematically incorporating their participation in
a number of projects aimed at improving their development while
being culturally appropriate.

Mr. Chairperson,

Finally, I would like to make a short reference to the issue of
youth migration, which is also discussed in the Report of the
Secretary-General entitled “Follow-up to the World Programme
of Action for Youth”. This is an area deserving more
attention and research, in order to get a better understanding of
the different dimensions of this phenomenon. In general terms,
young migrants are confronted with specific risks and
vulnerabilities. They, more than anyone else, need access to
reliable and unbiased information on the pros and cons of
migration, the dangers of irregular migration and the routes to
legal migration. They also need to be apprised of their rights and
obligations as migrants, their potential roles in the community,
and the means to further develop their skills and access to decent
employment opportunities. IOM stands ready to cooperate with all
interested parties in addressing the challenges of youth migration.
We would like, in particular, to acknowledge the work accomplished
so far by the Youth Employment Network (YEN), which, in our view,
can play a catalytic role in stepping up international attention
and support in this area, and we are ready to discuss with the YEN
Secretariat possible modalities for a partnership.

Thank you.