The head of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) mission in Kuwait, Mazen Abul-Hassan, said the regional strategy launched by the organization last week is a work map for the organization’s missions in the Gulf countries, based on effective partnerships , and guided by the regional strategy for the Middle East and North Africa 2020-2024.
In an interview with Al-Rai he said the cooperation with Kuwait is built on humanitarian partnership, to reach the largest possible number of people affected by disasters and wars.
Speaking on the occasion of the launch of the strategy, Abul-Hassan added that the organization had set nine strategic goals for its work in the Gulf countries.With regard to Kuwait, the work of the organization follows the general framework of the strategy, with the selection of objectives that are in line with Kuwait’s priorities in relation to the governance of migration.
He added that the goals of the organization largely intersect with the components of development plans, as they contribute to achieving the goals of the 2030 Sustainable Development Plan.
He added that sustainable development includes a number of goals that recognize the economic value of migrants, including goals 5, 8, 10, 16 and 17, in particular, and that clause 7 of goal 10 is the cornerstone as it calls for facilitating “safe , regular and responsible migration,” and implementing “safe, regular and responsible migration policies.”
He said that the organization will work with Kuwait to link the goals of “Sustainable Development 2030” and “Kuwait Vision 2035”, especially with regard to:
1- Promoting comprehensive and sustainable economic growth for all.
2- Full and productive employment.
3- Providing decent work for all.
4- Eliminate forms of violence against women and girls, including trafficking, sexual exploitation, and other types of exploitation.
He stated that the organization works with companies, institutions and individuals on the basis of partnership, as the active participation of the private sector is critical to advancing humanitarian and development goals. The private sector is an important partner and stakeholder in addressing today’s pressing migration challenges, most notably sustainability.
He said that this partnership is through raising funds from the private sector for humanitarian projects, exchanging experiences, working on technology in the humanitarian field, and other common topics.
He stressed that one of the objectives of the regional strategy is to work as a partner for Gulf governments in supporting the humanitarian and emergency response to countries outside the Gulf region, conflict-affected communities, including internally displaced persons and refugees, as a response to the humanitarian crises in Syria, and other humanitarian emergencies, in communities hosting Syrian refugees, in Jordan, Turkey, Lebanon, Yemen and Iraq.
Regarding the most important needs monitored by the organization, Abul-Hassan said that more than 25 countries have crises, whether internal displacement, asylum or humanitarian disasters.
As part of the United Nations system, the organization works with its partners to monitor humanitarian needs and develop their own responses.
He added that according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, there are 274 million needy people in 2022, and a massive increase in needs over the past five years, with the highest needs in Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, Ethiopia and Sudan.
“For example, in the Middle East and North Africa, the most needs are concentrated in Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Syria and Yemen, and the organization has more than 20 humanitarian appeals to help nearly 33.9 million people, and the organization needs more than 1.8 billion dollars to implement projects to help them,” he said.
9 Strategic Objectives for Working in the Gulf Countries
1- Raising the level of communication and coordination in the main priorities of immigration.
2- Providing technical assistance regarding the policies of Gulf governments so that the management of labor mobility is human rights-friendly.
3- Firm measures to protect migrants.
4- Providing technical support to achieve the objectives of the Gulf governments to increase the participation of their citizens in the labor market.
5- Improving the skills of immigrants.
6- With a focus on youth and women in particular.
7- Develop a comprehensive approach and mechanism to combat human trafficking.
8- Use of prevention, protection and accountability programs.
9- Defining policies and partnerships.
On the five key elements of a Development Plan on the Organization’s Relationship to Sustainable Development , Abul-Hassan said, the main elements that underpin the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development are:
1 – People: the social component.
2- Prosperity: the economic component.
3- Planet: the environmental component.
4- Peace: the political component.
5- Partnership: the cultural component.
At the end of the meeting, Mazen Abul-Hassan said, “On behalf of all the staff of the United Nations Migration Mission in the State of Kuwait, I extend to the government and people of Kuwait the highest congratulations and blessings on the occasion of the national holidays.
“We affirm the depth of the partnership that brings together the International Organization for Migration and the State of Kuwait, and the cooperation that brings us together in all relevant humanitarian fields, and we look forward to the continuation of this partnership, in order to achieve the sustainable development goals and the global agreement for safe, orderly and regular migration.
“Finally, I would like to express my wishes to the government and people of the State of Kuwait for lasting prosperity and peace.”
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