GFMD ( Global Forum on Migration and Development)
At the International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo in 1994, contribution of migration to the development of the countries of origin and destination was emphasized for the first time in the international community. Global Commission on International Migration launched in 2003 by the efforts of Kofi Annan, then Secretary-General of the United Nations, aimed to draw more attention to the subject. Following these two advance, the idea of forming a global forum which allows a more systematic and in-depth discussions on migration&development issues was agreed at the UN High Level Dialogue on Migration and Development in New York on September 15-16, 2006.
GFMD has an informal structure based on voluntary participation instead of a strict structure where binding decisions are taken, and the forum process encourages cooperation between states. Although GFMD is not a UN agency, the Forum has strong ties with the organization and it is the most comprehensive dialogue platform in the field of migration. Reports on forum meetings are submitted to the Members of United Nations via Secretary-General.
Turkey has been involved in GFMD process more actively since its first participation in the GFMD Steering Group meeting in 2011. Turkey also became the chair of the forum for the 2014-2015 period following Sweden’s chairmanship, and it has proven its undaunted dedication to contribute and produce added value to the field of migration and development on a global scale.
GFMD chairmanship was previously held by Belgium (2007), the Philippines (2008), Greece (2009), Mexico (2010), Switzerland (2011), Mauritius (2012) and Sweden (2013-2014).
Impact of international migration on economic and social development, migrant rights and their protection, anti-migrant smuggling and anti-human trafficking efforts, multi-dimensional issues within the context of migration, workers’ remittances and development as well as building partnerships, bilateral and regional cooperation in the field of international migration are discussed in GFMD meetings.
Forum aims at progress in the issues below:
- To discuss the relationship between migration and development, policies in this field, challenges of implementation and opportunities of cooperation with decision makers and implementers at the informal level, to contact other related institutions and authorities, to obtain applicable and action-oriented results.
- To share knowledge related to good implementations and experiences in order to benefit from the opportunities resulting from migration movements.
- To support national, regional and international cooperation in the field of migration and development, to identify deficiencies in informational, political and corporate structures on the purpose of harmonizing the policies.
- To provide partnerships and cooperation among countries, international organizations, communities abroad, immigrants, scholars and other related people and institutions.
- To determine international priorities in the field of migration as well as the agenda of migration and development.
The participation Turkey in numerous international and regional platforms and the emphasis on migration in those platforms display our commitment to the establishment of an active regional migration management and our belief in Turkey’s leading role in this process. As a result of this approach, our country has made efforts to participate in the platforms which aim at the development of the dialogue between the countries of origin, countries of transit and destination; prevention of irregular migration, understanding the relationship between migration and development and the establishment of related policies in these fields.
Turkey took over the chair of the GFMD at the 7th Summit in Stockholm on May 14-16 2014 and Turkey’s chairmanship of the GFMD has started officially by July 1 2014. The chairmanship will be carried on until the end of 2015 and will be handed over to Bangladesh after the 8th summit planned to take place in Istanbul in October 2015.
You can reach the GFMD webpage by the link below:
http://gfmd.org
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