OMI - Africa urged to enhance free movement for trade purposes
MANY-a-times, there has been arguments concerning the demarcation of country borders on the African continent with some strongly saying it was the work of the colonial master who tended to devise a system of divide and rule while plundering the natural resources of the countries.
Be that may, the trend of maintain borders has not been reversed as to-date these same so called artificial barriers amongst sisters or brothers still reign supreme to an extent of even having in place conditions for nationals to qualify for one to visit another country.
However, of prominent notice where these borders are concerned is that none of these countries can freely exist without the other and also that they need to have measures in place that would foster cordial relationships since they have embraced these same artificial boundaries. It is for his reason that they ended up forming an organisation that deals with their interests in harnessing the activities in relation to borders.
It is the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) which a migration agency. Nevertheless, the just ended three-day 2nd Intra-Regional Forum on Migration in Africa looking at the business aspect of the borders that many African countries have kept high and have tended to remain contentious among the governments on the continent.
The theme was “Fostering Regional Integration: Facilitating Trade and Human Mobility through Enhanced Border Management”.
Prominent on the agenda as observed by International Organisation of Migration Director General Ambassador William Lacy Swing is that too often security concerns, fear of being overwhelmed by irregular migrants and foreign workers, and tensions with nationals, especially in periods of significant unemployment and socio-economic instabilities continue to dominate discussions on migration.
Ambassador Swing noted that governments are apprehensive about the possible impact of migrants on national identities and on the socio-cultural dynamics operating within host communities.
“They are also inclined to worry about the health implications of cross-border mobility. These concerns have led to restrictive immigration policies and tighter border controls that often produce undesirable outcomes.
In the face of limited opportunities for regular migration, many migrants seek help from smugglers and unscrupulous middle men to circumvent border controls,” he says. He notes that the distressing result of it all is the subsidization of illicit criminal networks and enterprise adding that while the illegal activities generate lucrative profits for smuggling and trafficking networks, it is migrants who are made to pay the price, sometimes with their lives. Ambassador Swing says from the border vantage point the tighter border controls and restrictive visa issuance systems tend to undermine efforts to boost intra-Africa trade, attract foreign direct investments and tourism and facilitate the deployment of expatriate personnel from within and outside of the continent. “IOM’s experience is that there is a wealth of talent in Africa, at all skill levels, for the most part young and enthusiastic, begging to be given the opportunity to contribute to the economic growth of African countries,” he says. He adds that, “there is need clear need to re-conceptualize borders so that they are not seen as barriers to people movement but as spaces of exchange where neighbouring states manage the flow of goods and people to mutual benefit”. Ambassador Swing feels that improving the implementation of trade regimes and boosting intra-Africa trade, requires the adoption and implementation of coherent and efficient trade policies at the national, regional and continental levels guided by policies specifically geared to the promotion of intra-African trade. On streamlining the visa regimes, Ambassador Swing says visa systems can easily become so overloaded that they end up deterring rather than encouraging movement. “If intra-Africa trade, investment and cooperation are to prosper then impediments to free movement of people, labour and capital must be removed and visa systems be streamlined and visa issuance procedures simplified. This would be consistent with the Declaration on Migration adopted in June 2015 in Johannesburg, South Africa,” he says. And Home Affairs Minster Davies Mwila observed that countries of origin in Africa have limited success in their various strategies to reduce the outflow of migrants. “There is need to prepare and protect African workers once they migrate. At the same time, transit and destination countries struggle to cope with the large numbers of arrivals, which often result in security and public health concerns and resentment from local populations,” he says. He emphasizes on the need to put in place a robust monitoring framework for immigration which he says is key as it provides critical information on bottlenecks, weaknesses, gaps and opportunities during the implementation process. Mr. Mwila says dealing with large scale movements of refugees and migrants requires that the fundamental human rights are promoted and protected regardless of their legal status by going beyond the targets and find humane ways of dealing with people on the move. Assistant Secretary General of COMESA Ambassador Nagla El-Hussainy observes that migration multi-dimensional with both benefits and ills. “On one hand the ills of human trafficking which result in loss of lives and human tragedy along the Mediterranean region saw the loss of about more than 2000 persons in 2015. Political crisis and human violations, natural disasters, lack of economic opportunities and structural poverty have led people in all parts of the African continent to move in the quest for a better future. Sometimes they pay the price with their lives,” he says. Ambassador El-Hussainy says although most countries in Africa have committed to measures aimed at supporting the implementation of the Protocols on free movement of people, the difficulty resides in a lack of political will and capacity of African countries to implement the decisions taken at the Ministerial level in different Regional Economic Communities (RECS). He believes that free movement of persons comes along with all the other factors that contribute to growth and remains an unavoidable necessary for the envisioned African Union. “The growth of intra-Africa Trade has been hampered by measures including restrictive immigration practices and that is the reason why we keep calling the Member States of different RECS to facilitate the movement of persons as a key to deepening regional integration and promoting business development,” he says. After all is said and deliberated, it remains the responsibility of all member countries to take note and cognizance of the fact that human mobility is an integral part of the globalized world, as some school of thought say migration is not a problem to be solved but a reality to be managed.
In the face of limited opportunities for regular migration, many migrants seek help from smugglers and unscrupulous middle men to circumvent border controls,” he says. He notes that the distressing result of it all is the subsidization of illicit criminal networks and enterprise adding that while the illegal activities generate lucrative profits for smuggling and trafficking networks, it is migrants who are made to pay the price, sometimes with their lives. Ambassador Swing says from the border vantage point the tighter border controls and restrictive visa issuance systems tend to undermine efforts to boost intra-Africa trade, attract foreign direct investments and tourism and facilitate the deployment of expatriate personnel from within and outside of the continent. “IOM’s experience is that there is a wealth of talent in Africa, at all skill levels, for the most part young and enthusiastic, begging to be given the opportunity to contribute to the economic growth of African countries,” he says. He adds that, “there is need clear need to re-conceptualize borders so that they are not seen as barriers to people movement but as spaces of exchange where neighbouring states manage the flow of goods and people to mutual benefit”. Ambassador Swing feels that improving the implementation of trade regimes and boosting intra-Africa trade, requires the adoption and implementation of coherent and efficient trade policies at the national, regional and continental levels guided by policies specifically geared to the promotion of intra-African trade. On streamlining the visa regimes, Ambassador Swing says visa systems can easily become so overloaded that they end up deterring rather than encouraging movement. “If intra-Africa trade, investment and cooperation are to prosper then impediments to free movement of people, labour and capital must be removed and visa systems be streamlined and visa issuance procedures simplified. This would be consistent with the Declaration on Migration adopted in June 2015 in Johannesburg, South Africa,” he says. And Home Affairs Minster Davies Mwila observed that countries of origin in Africa have limited success in their various strategies to reduce the outflow of migrants. “There is need to prepare and protect African workers once they migrate. At the same time, transit and destination countries struggle to cope with the large numbers of arrivals, which often result in security and public health concerns and resentment from local populations,” he says. He emphasizes on the need to put in place a robust monitoring framework for immigration which he says is key as it provides critical information on bottlenecks, weaknesses, gaps and opportunities during the implementation process. Mr. Mwila says dealing with large scale movements of refugees and migrants requires that the fundamental human rights are promoted and protected regardless of their legal status by going beyond the targets and find humane ways of dealing with people on the move. Assistant Secretary General of COMESA Ambassador Nagla El-Hussainy observes that migration multi-dimensional with both benefits and ills. “On one hand the ills of human trafficking which result in loss of lives and human tragedy along the Mediterranean region saw the loss of about more than 2000 persons in 2015. Political crisis and human violations, natural disasters, lack of economic opportunities and structural poverty have led people in all parts of the African continent to move in the quest for a better future. Sometimes they pay the price with their lives,” he says. Ambassador El-Hussainy says although most countries in Africa have committed to measures aimed at supporting the implementation of the Protocols on free movement of people, the difficulty resides in a lack of political will and capacity of African countries to implement the decisions taken at the Ministerial level in different Regional Economic Communities (RECS). He believes that free movement of persons comes along with all the other factors that contribute to growth and remains an unavoidable necessary for the envisioned African Union. “The growth of intra-Africa Trade has been hampered by measures including restrictive immigration practices and that is the reason why we keep calling the Member States of different RECS to facilitate the movement of persons as a key to deepening regional integration and promoting business development,” he says. After all is said and deliberated, it remains the responsibility of all member countries to take note and cognizance of the fact that human mobility is an integral part of the globalized world, as some school of thought say migration is not a problem to be solved but a reality to be managed.