THE International Organisation for Migration (IOM) concluded its 10-day workshop on the IOM Essentials of Migration Management 2.0 (EMM2.0) to Guyana government officials across several key stakeholder sectors.
According to a release, this workshop was hosted online and in-person, following COVID-19 guidelines, in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, with additional participation from the Ministries of Amerindian Affairs, Home Affairs, and Parliamentary Affairs and Governance. The EMM2.0 is a global programme on migration management which provides online resources and foundational training to government officials and stakeholders dealing with migration.  This training was made possible through IOM’s Western Hemisphere Programme (WHP), generously funded by the United States Department of State Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM). The EMM2.0 training workshop is designed to lend support to Governments that are committed to incorporating a migration framework into their national development plans.

“Well-managed migration promotes economic growth and social enrichment in countries of origin, transit and destination. For the migrants, it offers broader horizons, and the opportunity to work towards a better future,” explained IOM Regional Director for Central and North America and the Caribbean, Michele Klein Solomon, at the launch of the training course.
As one of the designers of the original EMM course, Solomon noted that the initiative does not aim to prescribe a “one-size-fits-all” approach to how countries implement migration management mechanisms. Instead, the course provided institutional guidance based on good practices. “The initiative offers accurate and up-to-date information, with an aim to contribute to a common understanding of migration management, grounded in international frameworks, such as the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration,” added Solomon.

Furthermore, it was noted by both IOM and the Government that there is a need to establish a balance between national interests and agreed- upon international commitments as they relate to migration governance. This training is part of a larger strategy that will contribute to crafting national responses to thematic areas in migration governance such as border management, labour migration, and migrant integration strategies. These responses would be dependent on the experience and guidance provided by those government officials participating in the training. Senior Ambassador, Michael Brotherson, Director of Bilateral Affairs, within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Guyana, welcomed the initiative as a step in the right direction for addressing the migration dynamics in the country. He noted that the activity provided government officials the opportunity to increase their capacity to address migration management challenges and shape policies that will address this issue in the country’s new development phase.

According to Legal Officer at the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs, Miriam Andrew-Ming, the EMM workshop was extremely well-timed given the country’s current migration circumstances. She explained that her ministry has a key role to play in migration management, given the proximity that Indigenous Peoples’ villages have to the country’s borders and in hosting migrant populations.
“The information becomes useful in terms of how we can strategically plan our work to impact migration,” shared Andrew Ming, who added: “Even though it does not directly affect [the ministry], in a collaborative way we can work with other ministries that may have more of a direct line to migration issues.”