Remarks by the President of the General Assembly,
Mr. Philemon Yang,
? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?Informal Plenary Meeting to consider the SG’s biennial report on the Global Compact on Migration ?
Thursday, 5 December 2024
[Delivered by the Vice President]
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Thank you for the opportunity to deliver these remarks on behalf of His Excellency Philemon Yang, President of the General Assembly.
Colleagues,
I welcome the Secretary-General’s biennial report on the Global Compact on Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, which remains an important instrument to govern international migration.
This year’s report offers recommendations on missing migrants and highlights the need to re-focus efforts on providing humanitarian assistance to migrants in distress.
It also calls for the development of indicators to assist Member States in conducting comprehensive national reviews of the Compact’s implementation.
These welcome and overdue elements will bolster our support for migrants at a time when national, regional and international approaches to migration are becoming extremely complex.
Indeed, records show that 2023 was the deadliest year of the past decade for migrants on dangerous routes, with 8,000 lives lost.[1]
It is evident that current migration pathways have pushed migrants towards dangerous and irregular journeys – in countries of origin, transit and destination – and resulted in unnecessary suffering and loss.
Added to this is the fact that global crises and humanitarian emergencies continue to exacerbate migration flows heightening the vulnerabilities of migrants and their families.
Against this backdrop, we must ensure that national efforts to provide humanitarian assistance are supported and strengthened.
I encourage all Member States to take every effort to ensure that migrants have access to humanitarian assistance that meets their essential needs with full respect for their rights, wherever they are.
Likewise, I call on all Member States and relevant stakeholders to work together to strengthen resilience and self-reliance of migration systems at the national, regional and international levels.
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
I am pleased to see progress on the development of indicators to monitor the implementation of the Global Compact, as requested in the progress declaration adopted at the International Migration Review Forum.
Likewise, I welcome efforts to improve data disaggregation, which will strengthen our efforts to improve migration and support migrants at all stages.
Building on this progress, it is critical that we strengthen the capacity of statistical offices, especially in developing countries, to collect, analyse and use migration data.
Allow me to extend my sincere appreciation to the Migration Network for their continued leadership and support.
As we move forward, I encourage all Member States, stakeholders and regional organisations to re-commit to the principles and processes of the Global Compact on Migration.
International migration is a transnational phenomenon that no State can or must address alone.
I thank you.
[1] https://www.migrationdataportal.org/themes/migrant-deaths-and-disappearances#:~:text=Since%202014%2C%20more%20than%204%2C000,decade%20of%20documenting%20migrant%20deaths.
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