AKIPRESS.COM - Representatives of government institutions and public organizations discussed topical issues of migration and the role of the OSCE in migration governance at an OSCE-organized roundtable discussion that took place in Ashgabat from 29 to 30 August 2018.

The Centre in Ashgabat, in co-operation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, the Office of the Co-ordinator of the OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), organized the workshop to contribute to the implementation of national migration-related initiatives of Turkmenistan in line with relevant OSCE’s commitments.

The event brought together officials from law-enforcement bodies, the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection, the Mejlis (Parliament), the Ombudsman and the Justice Ministry as well as representatives of other relevant institutions and public organizations.

Teresa Albano, Economic Affairs Officer/OCEEA, elaborated on the OSCE’s best practices and regional and national activities in the area of migration. Special emphasis was laid on appropriate measures to support well-governed labour migration in line with international standards and OSCE commitments.

“OSCE participating States have adopted a number of decisions which highlight economic and social aspects of migration and have contributed to the development of the mandate of the OSCE in the area of migration,” said Head of the Centre in Ashgabat Natalya Drozd.

“The workshop offered the OSCE's unique approach to tackling the phenomena of economically motivated migration and provided an opportunity for national policymakers, practitioners and civil society organizations to discuss case studies of labour migration and identify areas for enhanced action-oriented co-operation.”

Albano said that the idea of this workshop is to link the “know-what” – the knowledge of facts – with the “know-how” – discussing ways to implement activities that are considered most suitable for the context of Turkmenistan. “It is our firm belief that the seminar will contribute to the building of capacities of Turkmenistan’s officials to formulate actions that allow the country to benefit from well-managed labour migration,” she said.

A representative from the IOM’s Office in Turkmenistan presented the mandate and activities of the IOM in the country. The participants and experts shared views on the national priorities and plans for future co-operation between the OSCE and Turkmenistan in the area of labour migration.