Business perspective of Migration with focus on Africa

Business leaders in Africa on 27^th May 2021, held consultations on a safe, orderly, and regular migration. This is on the basis that people are moving across Africa in search of opportunities where they can be productive. A safe and orderly movement will ensure prosperity and dignity of African Citizens.

The meeting was hosted by the International Organization for Employers (IOE) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and co-hosted the by BUSINESSAfrica with the view of getting Business Perspectives on migration in Africa in preparation for the Africa Regional Review for the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) and the International Migration Review Forum (IMRF).

During this first BUSINESSAfrica – IOE – IOM meeting on the implementation of the GCM (adopted in December 2018 by the United Nations General Assembly) members and relevant stakeholders exchanged ideas on the issues facing their countries and regions on labour migration. They were encouraged to share best practices and recommendations they wish to see explored and potentially developed to facilitate skills migration at the regional, continental, and global level.

The opening sessions were graced by Mr. El Mahfoudh Megateli, Secretary General at Confédération Générale des Entreprises Algériennes, Mr. Stephen Obiro, Head of Advocacy, Consulting and Partnerships at FKE on behalf of Mrs. Jacqueline Mugo, Secretary General of BUSINESSAfrica, and Aissata Kane, Senior Regional Advisor for Africa at IOM. They made brief remarks on the importance of having employers at the table when it comes to regulating labour migration.

Mrs. Kane underlined the critical role played by the private sector in Countries economy recovery post the COVID-19 pandemic. She noted that this informed the need to strengthen the movement of migration. Mr. Obiro added that “No matter the direction of migration, it has to be regulated properly and leave no one behind!” Mr. Megateli deplored the slow process of implementation of regulations and the lack of financing in this area. “Migration is a complex topic but with the right regulations, many issues could be avoided. It is therefore essential to adopt ethical recruitments and to invest in skills development.” he said.

The sessions objectives included;

• Enhancing availability and flexibility of pathways for regular migration.
• Facilitating fair and ethical recruitment and safeguard condition that ensure decent work.
• Investing in skills development and facilitate mutual recognition of skills, qualifications and competences.

Participants called for new technologies help workers to work remotely. Additionally, governments were asked to adopt strict and clear regulations on labour migration in the space of the pandemic. However, the general agreement was on the importance of having the private sector involved in migration discussions.