PH Permanent Representative to UNand IOM Director General Discuss Migration Issue
Philippine Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva, Evan P. Garcia, (right) shakes hand with Director General for International Organization for Migration (IOM), William Lacy Swing, during the former’s courtesy call on April 12 at the IOM Headquarters in Geneva.
20 April 2017 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Permanent Representative of the Philippines to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva Evan P. Garcia called on the Director General of the International Organization for Migration, Ambassador William Lacy Swing at the IOM Headquarters in Geneva on April 12.
“I look forward to working with you as we steer the migration issue into a new era. So much can still be done as we move forward, among others, towards the realization of the Global Compact on Migration," said Ambassador Garcia.
Ambassador Swing, on the other hand, praised the Philippines as “the ultimate migration country” with its remarkable efforts in managing the temporary migration of overseas Filipino workers.
It may be recalled that the Philippines was cited in a research conducted by The Economist in 2016, which was commissioned by IOM, as the only country – of the 15 countries reviewed – that was given the highest rate in terms of institutional capacity, migrant rights, safe and orderly migration, labor migration management, and regional and international cooperation and other partnerships.
The Director General further expressed IOM’s satisfaction in the performance of Filipinos who are working at the IOM Administrative Office in Manila. He cited that the staff composition in Manila is even bigger than in the IOM headquarters in Geneva with around 350 employees - mostly Filipinos; only about 10% are from various nationalities.
In conclusion, Ambassador Garcia conveyed the Philippines’ appreciation to the decades of cooperation and assistance provided by IOM to the Philippine government and the Filipino migrants and victims of natural disasters in the country. END