Dear friends,
We are pleased to inform you that the 2nd National Conference on Migration (NCoM) is going to be held in Kathmandu on September 27-28, 2016!
NCoM was born out of a desire to bring a diversity of voices throughout Nepal into a common forum to discuss current issues related to labour migration, in order to create space both for you to share, as well as have your own framework expanded. There will be a great wealth of knowledge in the room over the two days, as we are inviting government agencies, international organizations, migration researchers, practitioners, policy makers, as well as prospective and returnee migrants.
In May 2013 we hosted the 1st NCoM, and had 150 people who participated. The conference resulted in 38 practical recommendations put forward regarding migration and reintegration. As we look ahead to the 2nd conference shortly, we are excited to build upon our successes, and find the next steps we can unite around to make migration safer.
Over our two days together, we will hold multiple panel sessions, presentations, key note speeches, and side events, all of which will focus on key thematic areas that our organizing team has identified. To see a tentative list of these thematic areas, please see below. Many of the panelists will be presenting recent papers that fit into these areas, and a moderator will guide the ensuing discussion. At the end of each day, a summative session will be held to present the results from the day’s discussions.
In the end, we expect that the conference will produce:
- The Kathmandu Declaration 2016 that addresses international labour migration;
- A Compendium of analytical papers that will be presented throughout the conference;
- Thematic conclusions from each of the sessions, which will be brought into conversation with the SAARC platform on labour migration, the Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD), and the current national policy processes of the Government of Nepal.
All of our plans will not work without your voice and presence at the conference! We therefore extend a warm welcome to each of you to join us at the 2nd National Conference on Migration on September 27-28.
On behalf of our organizers,
Nilambar Badal
Co-Director
National Conference on Migration
Tentative Thematic Areas to be covered:
- Legal and Policy Frameworks
- Review of the Foreign Employment Act and other policies and guidelines
- Labour diplomacy regarding bilateral and multi-lateral frameworks for labour migration
- Strengthening of consular services for migrant workers
- Decentralization of the DoFE in line with federal structure and the administrative reforms of other line Ministries involved in migration issues
- Status of the Ministry of Labour and Employment’s e-governance plans
- Financial and Social Costs of Migration
- Recruitment costs and other challenges in the migration process
- Attempts in reducing the cost of migration (‘free-visa free-ticket policy’ provisions and the actual status)
- Situation of the families left behind – psychosocial impacts, education of children etc.
- Stigmatization of women migrant workers
- Protection of Migrant Workers with Focus on Female Migrants
- Promoting safety and dignity of the domestic workers
- Intervention for mitigating psychosocial impacts of distressed returnee migrants and their families
- Aspirant women migrant workers’ vulnerability to trafficking
- Implementation of standard terms of employment for migrant domestic workers
- Empowering Migrant Workers
- Improving access to information on safe migration through up-scaling MRC services
- Equipping migrants with skills for better paying jobs
- Improving migrants access to essential health services
- Access to justice: increasing effectiveness of grievance redress mechanisms at home and abroad
- Return Migration, Remittances, and Diaspora Investments in Nepal
- Safe and cost effective remittance transfers
- Harnessing remittances for local economic development
- Reintegration of the returnees: a need for dedicated policy and programs
- Nepali Diaspora and their engagement with Nepal