Mr. Chairman;

Your Excellencies, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs assembled here in Council;

Mr. Secretary General;

Distinguished Delegates:

It is a great honor to take part in this, the 36th Session of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) Council of Foreign Ministers – a session that takes place only four months before the 40th anniversary of the OIC's founding on 25th September 1969 at Rabat, Kingdom of Morocco.

I am deeply grateful to the Government and People of the Syrian Arab Republic for the honour and privilege to be here today.

For the International Organization for Migration, and for me personally, it is indeed a great honour and joy to be here at this distinguished gathering in the ancient city of Damascus – one of the worlds' oldest centers of civilization – a city where in the words of the revered poet Nizar Qabbani, "epochs materialize" and "eternity begins".

My colleagues and I are equally proud to be here as an expression of the importance we attach to our relations with the Organization of the Islamic Conference and its Member States. I recall with pleasure my attendance at the Eleventh Islamic summit of OIC at Dakar, Senegal in March 2008. There I had the privilege of meeting a number of you.

My brief remarks will address out relationship in two parts. The first will focus broadly on IOM and the Muslim World. In doing so, I will highlight the institutional linkages we enjoy and our key programmes in the region. The second part of my presentation concerns IOM's priorities in the region.

1. IOM and the Islamic World

We are committed to working with both present and prospective IOM Member States to mitigate the negative effects of human mobility through migration management systems. It is my hope that those countries that are not presently Members of IOM will consider seriously accepting to become at least Observers; this would offer a solid base on which to decide whether ultimately to become a Member or not.

In this regard, I am pleased to recall that during the past decade, the number of Islamic Member States in IOM quadrupled from 11 to 40. At the moment, two thirds of the OIC's 57 Member States, spread across four continents, are also members of IOM – the single largest group of states in IOM. The OIC itself joined the IOM Council as an Observer in January 2003.

As IOM's new Director-General, I am bringing a new set of priorities to the Organization; I intend to open a new era – one of respect, cooperation and understanding. First among these priorities is to ensure Member State "ownership" of IOM; and that means you – to bolster your trust and engagement in IOM.

Throughout the Islamic World, IOM has 134 offices in 37 Islamic countries. Four of them – Bangladesh, Egypt, Pakistan and Senegal-host regional offices. Our newest office in Djibouti opened just last month. IOM projects in OIC countries in 2008 totaled $175 million – a modest amount relative to the needs, but nonetheless a solid foundation on which to build.

We are also pleased with our institutional ties with many Arab and Islamic organizations. In addition to the cooperation agreement we enjoy with the OIC, we have signed cooperation agreements with the League of Arab States; the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization; and the Arab Labour Organization (with which I had the pleasure of attending and speaking at a ministerial meeting in Amman last month).

IOM has also concluded cooperation agreements with several NGO's in the region including the Hassan II Foundation for Moroccans Abroad and the Qatar Charity. Cooperation Agreements have opened the door for joint activities and we are keen to strengthen these partnerships and explore new opportunities.

1.1 Programmatic activities

Turning to our programmatic activities. In the spirit of Chapter I, article 1.18 of the OIC Charter, IOM is cooperating with many OIC Member States in the field of counter trafficking; IOM is active in those counties with programmes aimed at preventing trafficking in human beings and assisting victims of trafficking; this includes, if appropriate, returning and reintegrating victims back into their communities.

In Bangladesh and other countries, IOM is working with the Government and civil society to raise awareness about the perils of irregular migration, and to promote information sharing among various actors.

In Libya and other Maghreb countries, we are carrying out similar activities in addition to helping stranded migrants return to their homes in other parts of Africa and now, increasingly, South Asia.

In Syria, IOM is carrying out a number of projects in the Counter Trafficking field. This includes capacity building for shelters for victims of trafficking, capacity building in the area of counter trafficking legislation and awareness raising.

In December at Cairo, IOM organized with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs A "Regional Expert Meeting on Rights-Based Assistance to Victims of Trafficking". The meeting was held under the patronage of H.E. Mrs. Suzanne Mubarak, First Lady of Egypt. On that occasion, I took part and IOM launched the Arabic-Language edition of IOM's Counter-Trafficking Handbook.

More recently, in the Kingdom of Bahrain, IOM participated in a further major conference on Human Trafficking, hosted by HRH Shaikha Sabeeka bint Ibhraim Al-Khafifa.

In the field of technical cooperation, IOM is helping governments to build capacity through training – particularly in the areas of irregular migration, border management, overseas employment, counter trafficking and assistance to IDPs. Similar programmes have been launched in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Pakistan, Yemen, Syria and across the Maghreb.

Well managed migration can play a vital role in development and IOM seeks to reduce the high costs of transferring remittances, promote Diaspora investments; and facilitate the transfer of skills and know-how of nationals working abroad.

To encourage these activities, and to counter the so-called "brain-drain" – the outflow of highly skilled labour – IOM is working with partners in Senegal, Morocco and Tunisia, and their communities abroad, to enhance Diaspora organization for development.

Labour mobility is a structural feature of economies in the Islamic World. In this area too, IOM works closely with both origin and destination countries to:

• Select and train potential migrant contract workers;
• Conduct pre-departure information courses, including Cultural Orientation and language instruction; and
• Build expertise among government officials addressing these issues.

For Example, in Egypt, IOM launched an Integrated Migration Information System (IMIS) to help Egyptians find suitable jobs aboard, thereby facilitating legal migration. IOM has designed similar programmes in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Libya and Tunisia.

To promote regional dialogue, IOM is working with OIC countries to strengthen cooperation on migration management through information sharing and the exchange of best practices to tackle issues of common concern. "The 5+5 Process for the Western Mediterranean region is one such example, a process that has resulted in the Tunis Declaration and an agreed plan of action for implementation.

Another example is the Colombo Process – a coalition of Labour Ministers from ten Asian countries – that is making good progress.

More recently, in cooperation with the United Arab Emirates, IOM organized a major Ministerial Consultation on Contractual Labour in Asia. Ministers adopted the Abu Dhabi Declaration, a statement that aims to highlight the potential contribution of contractual labour mobility to economic growth in both countries of origin and destination.

IOM has extensive experience in providing relief to internally displaced persons and other forced migrants. At the moment, IOM is engaged in major humanitarian relief operations in the OIC region in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Sudan.

Closely associated with humanitarian assistance, is the promotion of medical evacuation and health rehabilitation. In Bosnia and in Iraq, IOM has facilitated medical evacuations and health rehabilitation, financed through the generous contributions of Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

II. IOM Priorities

The second part of my statement concerns IOM's priorities in the Islamic World. In this regard, I have six key points:

1. To support the development of Islamic countries through the Muslim Diaspora. In this regard, we are working to reinforce the role of Muslim Diaspora in the dialogue through IOM's support for the "Alliance of Civilization". I had the honor of taking part in the meeting of the "Alliance of Civilization" at Istanbul last month following meetings with Turkish authorities at Ankara.
2. To help enhance the capacities of OIC Member States to manage labour mobility more effectively.
3. To continue to assist governments and civil societies in the Islamic World to address comprehensively irregular migration and human trafficking, within a rights-based framework.
4. To strengthen IOM's emergency and post-crisis management capacity in OIC countries.
5. To prevent forced migration as a result of climate change – a growing threat in Islamic countries and elsewhere.
6. To establish partnerships with the private sector for the exchange of ideas on labour mobility and economic development; to promote migrants' rights; and advance corporate social responsibility.

Conclusion

In closing, I pledge that the International Organization for Migration will seek every opportunity to work with you in partnership to ensure that human mobility is harnessed for the benefit of all.

This is our commitment and our goal at IOM. In that spirit, I am eager to listen to your views and learn.