Story by Josephine Mugiyo, Diplomatic Correspondent
THE Director General of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Ms Amy Pope who is in the country, has paid a courtesy call on President Emmerson Mnangagwa at State House in Harare this Tuesday with climate change and conflict being discussed as the major drivers of migration.
Tasked with dealing with migration issues, the IOM was founded in 1951, in response to the large number of refugees and displaced persons in Europe after World War 2.
To date, the organisation has a membership of over 160 countries and is bequeathed with migrations issues across the globe, including in African countries.
Varying factors have seen migration figures soaring and Zimbabwe and Africa have not been spared.
In an interview after a closed-door meeting with President Mnangagwa, the visiting IOM Director General highlighted that she is the first director general of the organisation to visit Zimbabwe in the 73-year history of the organisation.
She revealed that her meeting with President Mnangagwa saw them discussing a number of issues which include the importance of his role as SADC chairperson as well as the need to ensure peace and stability in the region as these affect migration.
“I’m the first director general to visit Zimbabwe in the 73-year history and I’m here because of the importance of the country and government responding to issues of migration whether it’s here in the region or it’s in the country itself. There are a number of issues we discussed, first of all is to acknowledge the role of the President as the chair of SADC and the importance of that region in bringing peace and stability to the people who live here.”
Engaging the diaspora and welcoming them back home was also among the issues discussed with emphasis on ensuring that the country leverages on what they bring back home.
“We also spoke about the opportunity for people to migrate through regular pathways so that we can take advantage of the opportunities available regionally and globally. For people to go and live and work and make many and send their remittances back home. We also spoke about the importance of engaging the diaspora, welcoming them back so that we not only leverage their natural resources but their skills, network which will help the people of Zimbabwe,” Ms Pope said.
With climate change and conflict being among the top contributors of migration worldwide, Ms Pope pointed out the need to come up with interventions to support communities affected by climate change and conflict.
“We have seen communities being displaces at record numbers because of storms, desertification and flooding and so building out interventions to help support communities affected by climate is critical. Secondly, when there is conflict, the number of people who are displaced becomes high, in Sudan alone 11 million people have been displaced inside the country, another 3 million have been forced to cross borders.”
Key roles of the IOM include promoting humane and orderly migration and promoting international cooperation on migration issues.
