Mr. Kim Hak-Su (left) opens the Special Body on Least Developed and Landlocked Developing Countries, Eighth Session. At the meeting, H.E. Mr. Serik Akhmetov (right), Minister of Transport and Communications of the Republic of Kazakhstan gives the welcome statement to all participants.

International migration: a potential route to development for least developed and landlocked developing countries

The important nexus between international migration and development was high on the agenda of a special forum on least developed countries and landlocked developing countries in Asia and the Pacific, which was convened in Almaty, Kazakhstan on 15-16 May.

The 8th session of the Special Body on Least Developed (LDCs) and Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) was held two days prior to UNESCAP annual Commission session held in the same Central Asian city from 17 to 23 May. Energy security and international migration were the two issues discussed during the two-day meeting.

With one third of the 191 million international migrants residing in the region -- 53 million in Asia and 5 million in the Pacific -- international migration was seen as providing both challenges and opportunities for sending and receiving countries. The Special Body recognized that international migration could contribute to economic development and poverty reduction in many least developed and landlocked developing countries in the region. It stressed that migration, although not a substitute for development, should be integrated into development strategies in order to maximize its potential benefits.

In its report, the Special Body noted that “international migration had been increasingly viewed as a means of enhancing the transfer of skills, knowledge, technology and capital to countries of origin. Through collaborative initiatives, international migration could be harnessed to reduce poverty and contribute to overall socio-economic development”.
The meeting also stressed the need to manage and regulate migration, which could reduce the social and security concerns of both sending and receiving countries as well as contribute to development and reduce the vulnerability of migrants.

“The safety and well-being of migrants in destination countries are a major concern to their countries of origin. International migration agreements are tools for managing the interests of all parties”, said Mr. Kim Hak-Su, Executive Secretary of UNESCAP at the opening of the meeting.

Asia-Pacific has the second largest number of LDCs after Africa – 14 out of a global total of 50. It also has 12 LLDCs, four of them being also LDCs. According to the report of the meeting, the emerging dynamics of labour migration in the region has involved a growing number of least developed and landlocked developing countries, mostly as sources of migrants workers. In addition, in some countries, conflicts and natural disasters have displaced thousands of civilians both inside and outside the country.

“International migration has become part of the economic and social fabric of least developed and landlocked developing countries in Asia and the Pacific”, the report reads.

The 63rd UNESCAP Commission adopted a resolution on this very topic urging member and associate member countries to “identify ways and means to maximize the developmental benefits of international migration and to reduce its negative effects, to incorporate international migration issues into national development plans, including poverty reduction strategies, and to strengthen international cooperation in the area of international migration and development in order to address the root causes of migration, especially those related to poverty”.