Labour migration:

Integral part of creating employment

Sanjeevi JAYASURIYA

Labour migration has become an integral part of creation of employment opportunities and the Multilateral Framework on Labour Migration (MFLM) is useful to countries in South Asia.

Sri Lanka developed a road map on the formulation of the national policy which focused on three key areas such as good governance of labour migration, protection and empowerment of migrant workers and their families, and linking migration and development processes. This is in the process of implementation, Institute of Policy Studies Sri Lanka Executive Director Dr Saman Kelegama said. A four-pronged process was adopted by establishing three thematic tripartite plus working groups based on the focus areas. It is clear that credible migration policies are still a long way off in South Asia. Most policies are adopted on an ad hoc basis with no longer term vision or strategy, he said.

Sri Lanka is considering the ratification of ILO Conventions on migrant workers while NGOs have carried out a vigorous campaign in Bangladesh for ratification of both the UN and the ILO Conventions. Nepal is also considering ratification of ILO Migrant Worker Conventions once the remaining core conventions has been ratified. However, both India and Pakistan, the most important countries in terms of migrant populations in the sub-region, are yet to ratify, he said. There is considerable emphasis on sharing of good practices at the international and regional levels, and the Global Forum on Migration and Development has been promoting good practices in the area of migration and development.