Programme news, November-December 2012
part in phone-ins on labour migration on Vatan radio station
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- IOM and Government Migration Service hold joint information sessions in centrally- administered districts
- Representatives of Tajik authorities attend a conference in Sverdlovsk Province
- Round table on “Labour migration from Sughd Province: achievements, challenges and prospects”
- Demonstration of automated electronic database to read migration cards of Tajik nationals
part in phone-ins on labour migration on Vatan radio station
The project management team and Vatan radio station agreed to hold a series of live programmes to discuss the issues surrounding labour migration abroad by Tajik citizens.
Over two months, lawyers from IOM Tajikistan’s Migrant Support Centre prepared and took part in four radio programmes presenting information about how to prepare prior to departure, get a work permit or labour licence, register as a migrant and enter into an employment contract with employer. They also talked about administrative offences that can lead to foreign nationals being deported, Russian-language testing and health insurance, among many other topics.
The programmes included a live phone-in to answer listeners’ questions. Several listeners were advised to contact the IOM Tajikistan MSC for in-country help in resolving their problem and approaching the appropriate Tajik authorities or IOM Moscow. The IOM MSC hotline number was also given out on air, for further contact and more detailed information on labour migration. It is worth noting that the number of calls received by the hotline increased to 25 on the day of the broadcast and afterwards. Calls received by the hot line were mainly requests for an explanation of circumstances leading to bans on entry to the Russian Federation.
Training seminar for MSC employees Training was held from 26 November to 1 December in the Nadezhda guest house to build the capacity of MSC staff. The training covered the “monitoring and evaluation” and “report-writing” modules. The training aimed to give participants basic knowledge of monitoring and evaluation, familiarize them with the fundamental concepts, tools and methodologies used in monitoring and evaluation, and develop practical skills in planning and carrying out monitoring and evaluation.
- to give participants basic knowledge of the issues surrounding monitoring and evaluation and methodologies for carrying them out; - to develop participants’ ability to develop monitoring and evaluation tools;
- to improve participants’ ability to write monitoring and evaluation reports.
Overall, the training was conducted in a highly professional manner. Participants acquired and developed their report writing and data analysis skills, actively put forward their opinions and ideas, and shared their experiences with other participants. The seminar enabled participants to improve and polish their report writing skills.
As part of the training, the Dushanbe MSC legal adviser conducted sessions covering the topics of “Amendments to RF labour migration legislation”, “An overview of the IOM website www.iom.tj/csm”,“Case management: procedure, review and referral”, and “Procedure for writing and submission of monthly reports by regional MSCs”.
These sessions aimed to increase the capacity of MSC staff to communicate and advise Tajik citizens on labour migration, use the web site, respond to real-life queries by migrants and report back.
Fact-finding visit by representatives of Tajik authorities to the Kyrgyz Republic On 29 and 30 November, cordial meetings took place between a Tajik delegation (including representatives of the Government Migration Service, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Finance and the State Agency for Employment, Social Protection and Migration) and senior figures from Kyrgyz state and private bodies.
The main purpose of the visit was to enable Tajik officials to find out about the employment centre run by the Kyrgyz Ministry of Youth, Labour and Employment. The visit also gave the delegation the opportunity to meet senior officials from the Department for External Migration of the Kyrgyz Ministry of Foreign Affairs. During the meeting, the parties discussed mutual cooperation on labour migration and the possibility of jointly drafting instruments to improve the legal status of migrants from both countries that could be signed with the Russian Federation.
The delegation also met private employment agencies that help Kyrgyz citizens to find work abroad. The group leader will submit a memorandum on the visit to the Government Interdepartmental Commission for Labour Migration Management and present a report to an ordinary meeting of the Commission as soon as practicable.
IOM and Government Migration Service hold joint information sessions in centrally- administered districts In keeping with the joint action plan produced by the Government Migration Service and the Central Asia Regional Migration Programme, a series of information sessions were held in jamoats in the cities of Tursunzade and Vahdat.
Migration Service staff provided information about its activities, the aims and goals assigned to it by the Government, and its work to regulate labour migration. The IOM Mission explained how IOM MSCs operate in the regions of Tajikistan and also about the “hot line” that can be used by the inhabitants of these areas.
The project legal adviser informed participants about Russian and Kazakh legislation on labour migration, explained how to officially register as a migrant, obtain a work permit or labour licence and enter into an employment contract, and told them which state and civil society organizations they could contact for help in protecting their rights.
Participants listened closely to the speakers. They asked questions on matters of interest and immediately received exhaustive answers. Participants also suggested that this initiative should be continued as they had limited access to information on labour migration owing to their districts’ distance from the centre of Tajikistan.
Around 1,000 people attended the information sessions in the jamoats of the two cities. Participants were each given literature on labour migration, people trafficking and preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS among migrants.
After the information sessions, general meetings were held at city khukumats (state administrations), attended by managers and staff from the Government Migration Service, managers and staff from city khukumats, the chairs of jamoats, activists and representatives of state bodies to discuss cooperation on labour migration.
The Government Migration Service plans to continue to work with IOM project staff to run such sessions in remote jamoats of centrally administered districts from the beginning of 2013.
Representatives of Tajik authorities attend a conference in Sverdlovsk Province
A conference was held on 4 December in the town of Zarechnyi in Sverdlovsk Province on the topic of “The role of civil society in solving the challenges of migration”. It was organized by the Forum of Migration Organizations (an international civil society movement) and Urals House (an NGO) with the support of the IOM and the Office of the Sverdlovsk Province Human Rights Ombudsman. It was attended by representatives of state bodies and partner civil society organizations from Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, representatives of RF federal and regional state bodies, the Swiss Embassy in Russia, directors of Russian civil society foundations, well-known academics and the leaders of migration organizations from various Russian cities. The following topics were discussed: -Organized recruitment: myth or reality? -Participation of civil society in migrant integration -Implementation of the support programme to the voluntary migration of compatriots.
At the conference, the Ministry of Labour’s State Agency for Social Protection, Employment and Migration, Urals House (RF) and the Legal Support Centre LLC (RT) signed a tripartite agreement to cooperate on organized recruitment. Under this agreement, the parties will work to inform Tajik citizens about job vacancies with Russian employers and to help them complete the necessary paperwork and job search procedures.
The conference ended with the opening of Urals House’s Centre for Integrated Migrant Support.
18 December: International Migrants Day In keeping with the Joint Action Plan, the Khujand and Kulob MSCs together with the Sughd Province, Khatlon Province and Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province Directorates of the Migration Service and a host of NGOs organized events and information sessions for local residents. Information on labour migration (booklets, flyers and the video Pesh az safar bidon!/What to know before you go!) was distributed.
Staff of the IOM MSC and the Government Migration Service took part in a radio programme on the Vatan station informing listeners about the United Nations International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families. The programme ended with a quiz featuring questions on labour migration and migrants’ rights.
The winner was Mukim Yunusov, a third-year student at Dushanbe Institute for Physical Education. He won a Nokia mobile phone and a t-shirt and cap decorated with IOM logos. The programme reached around two million people as the station covers a large number of cities and districts.
On the same day, an event was organized at Dushanbe International Airport on the initiative of project staff. Passengers flying to Russia were given booklets and IOM Moscow business cards. It was made clear to them why they needed this material and what to do if they had any problems while in Russia.
Passengers also had the opportunity to watch the film Pesh az safar bidon! (What to know before you go!) in the airport departure lounge. This film was produced by the IOM jointly with the Government Migration Service. Passengers listened to staff from the two bodies with great interest, and there was enough time for many of them to ask questions and receive answers. Thanks to this event, over 400 passengers and their family members obtained information.
An information campaign entitled “For Safe Migration” was also held on 18 December by the Migrant Support Centre of the Centre for Human Rights (an NGO) working with the Sughd Province Directorate of the Migration Service.
To open, the Head of the Sughd Province Directorate of the Migration Service conveyed the best wishes of the Chair of Sughd Province to participants for International Migrants Day. The Khujand MSC coordinator presented the history of International Migrants Day and the aims of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.
This was followed by performances by local pop singers and a play about labour migrants. Short clips and films on labour migration and its risks were shown between performances.
The students and Arts Faculty of Khujand State University put on a play entitled Stories from the Lives of Migrant Workers, which showed the difficulties that labour migrants may face if they migrate without preparing, i.e. if they cannot speak the language, do not know the laws of the country where they are seeking work, are not qualified and so on.
As part of the event, a quiz was organized for teams of students from vocational lyceums in Sughd Province and the Khujand Training Centre to test their knowledge of labour migration. The team from Agricultural Vocational Lyceum No. 35 in Mastchoh District were the honorary winners, but all participants received certificates and keep-sakes.
Around 700 copies of information on labour migration were distributed to participants. Around 400 people took part in the “For Safe Migration” campaign.
Round table on “Labour migration from Sughd Province: achievements, challenges and prospects” A round table took place on 20 December, attended by representatives of Sughd Province executive authorities, local government and non-governmental and international organizations as well as representatives of businesses involved in labour migration in Sughd Province.
The round table aimed to stimulate a focused examination and discussion of problems arising from “irregular” labour migration, identify integrated medium-term solutions and draw up long-term recommendations.
The Head of the Sughd Province Directorate of the Government Migration Service gave a paper on labour migration from Sughd Province in 2012.
The Khujand MSC coordinator made a presentation on the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families and its aims, the rights and guarantees that it provides to labour migrants and their family members, and the duties that it imposes on state parties. Information was also provided on the report by the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan and the alternative report submitted by NGOs to the UN convention compliance committee.
It was also observed that Tajik citizens barred from entering Russia are a high risk group as their main source of income was previously labour migration. Their families may therefore encounter financial difficulties that might in turn lead to a rise in negative social consequences (including domestic violence). Moreover, some may turn to crime for lack of alternative means to earn their living. It was suggested that the competent authority should work to help such people find work in Tajikistan and to train or retrain.
Demonstration of automated electronic database to read migration cards of Tajik nationals On 14 November, a demonstration took place of an automated electronic database to read the migration cards of Tajik citizens entering and leaving the country. The demonstration was attended by managers from the Migration Service and its directorates as well as IOM Tajikistan representatives.
Previously, data from migration cards of Tajik citizens was manually entered by staff at Centres for Immigration Control into an electronic system, then transferred to the Migration Service’s Information Directorate. Directorate staff then compiled statistical reports manually. This database now simplifies the Centres’ task of collecting migration statistics as it allows data to be scanned and saved in the prescribed format. The database can also produce 12 types of report, which in turn makes it easier to produce statistical reports and saves time.
Those attending the demonstration were shown how cards are scanned, read and saved and how reports are produced in response to queries.
The server of the card-reading database will be located at the MS Information Directorate while scanners will be distributed to four centres for immigration control in border areas. Four computers with printers were also displayed. Regional events
World Bank hosts expert discussion on social insurance for foreign labour migrants (based on materials from the MIRPAL video conference on 30.11.2012)
The latest regular MIRPAL video conference was held at the end of November with the organizational support of the World Bank. Migration experts from the nine CIS countries discussed the options for and difficulties of providing social insurance to foreign migrant workers.
CIS countries currently have almost no inter-state regulation on social insurance for labour migrants. Instead, the domestic legislation of the country of employment applies. The lack of a clear legal framework on the transfer of insurance payments, including to migrants’ permanent countries of residence, means that many have no interest in working legally. At the same time, large amounts of money are lost from state budgets due to failure by foreign workers to pay tax on illegal income.
The keynote presentation given by Ms Aynura Umetova, leading expert at the Kyrgyz Institute of Strategic Research, focused on the need to introduce social insurance for labour migrants as an important factor in the protection of Kyrgyz labour migrants in their country of employment. The fundamental reasons for the lack of demand for a system of social (health) insurance among labour migrants were examined, and recommendations were put forward on improving the regulation of labour migration with regard to social insurance as well as other areas.
IOM Moscow Office Programme Coordinator Yuliya Melnichuk spoke about voluntary health insurance for labour migrants from CIS countries in Russia, including a survey carried out among potential labour migrants from Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan and IOM partner organizations in 2010.
This research showed that although migrants displayed great interest in voluntary medical insurance policies, the cost of insurance products did not currently meet the expectations and resources of labour migrants in countries of employment.
The representatives of the Russian, Kyrgyz and Moldovan state authorities responsible for social (pension) insurance expressed support for stepping up dialogue between CIS countries on bilateral agreements ofnpension insurance for nationals working in country parties.
The video conference resulted in an agreement to further discuss social insurance for migrant workers with the expert community and the competent authorities of MIRPAL member countries and to carry out a video conference on this issue in April or May 2013.
Materials from the video conference are available from the World Bank web site, www.worldbank.org/eca/migration
Updated data on migration and remittances for MIRPAL countries and Eastern Europe published on World Bank website
Updated indicators on migration and remittances in Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan were produced in 2012 as part of the MIRPAL programme. This task is carried out regularly and involves migration experts and practitioners from the nine CIS countries together with World Bank economists. Comparable statistics, compiled from verified sources using a uniform methodology, are hence publicly available.
Experts from the MIRPAL Network and World Bank strive to produce consistent and reliable estimates of migration and remittances as well as information on migration policy.
Country “migration profiles” aim to help improve data collection and monitoring of migration and remittance trends and to provide information about amendments to migration legislation: everything that modern migration experts require. Information and data contained in country migration profiles are grouped into the following categories: (1) migration stocks and flows; (2) remittance flows and channels; and (3) regulations pertaining to migration and remittances. Migration profiles are updated annually on the basis of data from national and international sources.
Country migration profiles can be consulted at: http://go.worldbank.org/WM12ABL5J0
On 8 November, an open letter to the Russian President was posted to http://caucasia.at.ua/news/otkrytoe_pismo/2012-11-08-1455 , written by members of the Media and Migration Network to request that he take control of the investigation into the case of slavery in a Moscow shop. The open letter has also been published on the following web sites, where it can still be signed: - on the Petitions site: http://goo.gl/MqXX4
- on Demoractor: http://democrator.ru/problem/9097
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