1 / 14

Regional Workshop on International Migration Statistics, Cairo, Egypt, 30 June - 3July 2009.

Regional Workshop on International Migration Statistics, Cairo, Egypt, 30 June - 3July 2009. International migration challenges in the ESCWA region. Frederico Neto, Chief, Social Development Division (SDD) UN-ESCWA. Increased number of migrants in the region (in millions).

yuki
Download Presentation

Regional Workshop on International Migration Statistics, Cairo, Egypt, 30 June - 3July 2009.

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript


  1. Regional Workshop on International Migration Statistics, Cairo, Egypt, 30 June - 3July 2009. International migration challenges in the ESCWA region Frederico Neto, Chief, Social Development Division (SDD) UN-ESCWA

  2. Increased number of migrants in the region (in millions) Source: UN Population Division

  3. Coexistence of several types of international migration • Temporary, transit and permanent migration • Labour and family migration • Different skill levels • Illegal migration • Forced migration High proportion of immigrants in Gulf countries • Immigrants form one-third (36%) of the total population in the Gulf region • Immigrants form about 90% of the labour force in Qatar, UAE and Kuwait • More than two-thirds of the immigrants to the Gulf originate from Asia • The share of those originating from other Arab countries was around 25% in 2005

  4. Increased youth propensity to migrate. • High youth unemployment rate in the region fuels rise in youth migration • Youth form a large share of the total unemployed population: • 40% to 60% of the unemployed population in Jordan, Palestine, Lebanon and Yemen • 80% in Kuwait and Qatar, 75% in Bahrain and 65% in Oman • Unemployment rates are higher among young women as compared with young men. The female youth unemployment rate in the region is 24%

  5. Increase in female labour immigration in selected jobs • Increasing number of female immigrants in domestic work, provision of health or personal assistance, childrearing, etc. • This phenomenon is widespread in Gulf countries and is also emerging in Lebanon and Jordan • The estimated number of female labour immigrants in the ESCWA region is 1.5 million

  6. High level of remittances flowing from and to the ESCWA region • In 2004, Gulf countries were the source of US$ 26 billion in remittances • Saudi Arabia is the 2nd most important source of remittances worldwide • In 2003, the ESCWA region received US$ 21.6 billions in the form of formal/registered remittances • Gulf countries are the source of almost half the remittances flowing to Lebanon, one third to Sudan and Yemen, and a quarter to Jordan • How to consider informal remittances in migration statistics?

  7. Demographic challenge:Distortion of the age-sex structure in the ESCWA region Distorted sex ratios in working age groups because of the sizeable foreign labour force (mostly males)

  8. Economic and social challenges • Unemployment rates, particularly among youth, are increasing in some GCC countries (e.g. 21% in Bahrain and 26% in Saudi Arabia in 2005 • Unprecedented expansion of the public sector has inflated their wage bills • Partly because of the sponsored migration (Kafeel) system, along with the unprotected status of migrants in many countries, the social protection is a key challenge

  9. Data and institutional challenges • Lack of data and knowledge related to the distribution of migrants by gender, educational level, occupation, rural/urban origin • Lack of standardized definitions of international migration, making it difficult to compare data of different countries, including discrepancies between sending and receiving countries • Unavailability of regional research centers specialized in international migration issues • Lack of specialized surveys tackling the issue of international migration • Unavailability of regional migration databases/information systems combining 2 components: data and policies.

  10. Way forward: The need for regional cooperation • There is an urgent need to establish a Regional • Consultative Process (RCP) for the management of • international migration: • 1- Among ESCWA or Arab countries (sending and receiving); • 2- Between receiving Arab countries and sending Asian • countries; • 3- Between sending Arab countries and receiving European • countries.

  11. Way forward: The need for regional cooperation RCP common areas of interest: 1- Exchanging data on migration from surveys, censuses, and administrative records; 2- Exchanging information and data in relation to undocumented migration and the trafficking of individuals across borders; 3- Exploring means of maximizing the benefits of migration, whether for sending or receiving countries; 4- Cooperating to channel the benefits of emigration to national development in the sending countries; 5- Tackling any emerging migration-related issues.

  12. Thank you

More Related