This year, we celebrate the 2nd International Women’s Day during the COVID-19 health emergency. Globally, migrant women have been and continue to be frontline workers, pouring themselves into supporting their communities as healthcare staff, scientists, professors, and service providers – many working in essential services. Women are holding families and communities together as societal safety nets are threatening to unravel.
On this International Women’s Day, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) pays tribute to women’s leadership during the COVID-19 response as they continue to fight for a more just and equal world.
Programme participants in IOM’s various initiatives across the world show how women and girls on the move expand their horizons and brave challenging paths to success.
Voices from a migrant camp in Greece
Zahra M. and Sakineh R., two women born and raised in Iran to Afghan parents, today are living in a migrant camp in Greece. They decided to take matters into their own hands when educational activities had to be shut down due to COVID-19. “At first, we stayed home, we didn’t know what to expect. We followed the health protocols, but as the time went by, we decided to create a more educational and entertaining environment for our kids. I teach English for beginners as a volunteer. I feel happy and proud, because through this difficult situation I was able to rely on my own strengths and contribute to my community,” recalls Sakineh.
With the support of the IOM team on-site, Zahra and Sakineh launched classes, taught by around 30 people living in the camp, on subjects such as English, Farsi, mathematics, and handicrafts, while strictly following COVID-19 health and safety guidelines and protocols.
“No one missed any of our classes. We feel happy and content for contributing [to] our community. The lack of education was among the reasons that we left Iran. We didn’t want the same thing [to] happen here,” explains Zahra.
She sees herself as a leader who would like to “serve my community and be by their side in the most difficult situations” and noted that she found women leaders to be “confident [and] work with courage and patience to achieve the best for the society.”
Zahra and Sakineh believe that migration gave them the opportunity to find themselves, and “opened a whole new world of opportunities,” and they are not going to let COVID-19 get in the way of anyone’s education in the camp.
Zahra and Sakineh are just two of the many women around the world who migrate for better educational opportunities.
Fatima H. is a 29-year-old mother of three born in Pakistan, also from Afghan migrants. She, too, is living in a camp in Greece with her 9-year-old son. Meanwhile, her daughter, 15, and another son, 12, live in a shelter in Germany.
Fatima. Photo: IOM
Fatima believes that “women are the leaders of their own world” and sees herself as a leader as she is able to “guide [her] family to help them create their own success stories.”
When she was 13, her family told her that she had to leave school to get married. While she could not prevent that outcome, she knew she could prevent the same thing from happening to her daughter.
“My husband and our families thought that it was time for her to get married. I could not let that happen. This time, I managed to do something about it. I decided to move to Europe with my children. Even though I knew that it was going to be a difficult and very dangerous route, [and] I was not sure that we were going to make it, I had to take a leap of faith. Not for me, but for them,” said Fatima.
She started studying online, reading books, and taking classes offered at the camp. She now has a diploma in English and, thanks to encouragement from IOM personnel, she began working as a translator in the camp.
She is now able to “give tips and ideas to [women] (…) on how to behave during this period, ensuring that our children follow their classes, and keeping them entertained at home.”
Fatima has not seen her daughter or her son in a long time, and while the separation has been more difficult amid COVID-19, what matters to her the most is for them to “live safe and be free to choose their own path in life.”
Around the world, there have been numerous stories of migrant women who step up to ensure that their communities were well informed of the health measures imposed due to COVID-19. Collectively, they found ways to make sure no one was left behind.
Nuha M., a Sudanese who arrived in Libya 26 years ago, manages to meet with young Sudanese migrants in open spaces, following health regulations, to help fight against feelings of isolation linked to the pandemic. Many of them crossed the desert and the sea, and saw their loved ones die. Nuha shares that she showed up every time, with no exception.
“Even if I had nothing to help them with, I sat and listened. I talked to them. It made us feel together and not alone,” she explained.
She also managed to help them reconnect with their families. Nuha believes women have no choice but to be proactive when faced with difficult situations.
Similarly, Aurelie A., a migrant woman from Benin, described how, while society pressured her to stay home and keep quiet, she helped establish a WhatsApp group to provide emotional support to migrants. She feels that her group creates a space for self-expression during the pandemic despite physical distancing. In this group, women share everything, from cooking lessons to guiding each other through childbirth.
“My name started being passed around among other West African and Sub-Saharan communities and church members, to ask for help and to support,” shared Aurelie.
Through her initiative, she reached out to IOM and raised awareness about the different needs of the various communities she was supporting to overcome these stressful times.
In addition to providing social and emotional support, migrant women have also filled tangible gaps that were necessary for the overall safety of all.
Vida, a migrant from Ghana, came to Libya in 2014 and dreams of owning a “big fashion shop.” Vida identified a critical need for masks in her community. She realized quickly that many migrants could not afford masks, and that the masks available were not very fashionable. She therefore taught herself and three other migrant women how to sew four different styles of masks.
Vida mentions that she “learned how to make the protective masks when we were in the most need of masks and many couldn’t afford [them].” After an initial success, and although women do not often venture there alone, she bravely “went to the Media [downtown area] to purchase more crafting and sewing materials” and made so many masks that they could regularly distribute them to those in need.
Vida. Photo: IOM
As Zahra, Sakineh, Fatima, Nuha, Aurelie and Vida boldly show us – by leading their own initiatives, whether in a camp in Greece or as part of migrant communities in Libya – that during this pandemic migrant women and girls are leading the way their own way!
Through their actions to better the lives of their families and communities, they have shown us that there can be many types of leadership, and that all efforts, no matter how small, can have a lasting impact during a global crisis.
IOM wishes all migrant women and girls on the move a Happy International Women’s Day 2021.
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Netherlands, IOM launch Global Migration Initiative to protect people on the move
COMPASS will provide vulnerable migrants including victims of trafficking and unaccompanied or separated children access to a broad range of protection and assistance services.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands launched the Cooperation on Migration and Partnerships for Sustainable Solutions initiative (COMPASS) at the beginning of 2021. COMPASS is a global initiative, in partnership with 12 countries, designed to protect people on the move, combat human trafficking and smuggling, and support dignified return while promoting sustainable reintegration.
The initiative is centred on a whole-of-society approach which, in addition to assisting individuals, will work across all levels – households, communities, and the wider communities – and encompasses the following partner countries: Afghanistan, Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Mali, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, and Tunisia.
“We want to mobilize families, peers and communities to encourage informed and safe migration decisions, protect migrants, and help those returning home reintegrate successfully,” said Monica Goracci, Director of the Department of Migration Management at IOM.
“One key component is also undermining the trafficking and smuggling business models through the promotion of safe alternatives and information sharing to reduce the risks of exploitation and abuse by these criminal networks.” Vulnerable migrants, including victims of trafficking and unaccompanied or separated children, will have access to a broad range of protection and assistance services such as mental health and psychosocial support, while migrants in transit who wish to return home will be supported with dignified return and reintegration.
Community level interventions will focus on improving community-led efforts to address trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants, and support sustainable reintegration of returning migrants. COMPASS will work with national and local governments to enable a conducive environment for migrant protection, migration management and international cooperation on these issues.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is pleased to launch the COMPASS programme in cooperation with IOM, an important and longstanding partner on migration cooperation,” said Marriët Schuurman, Director for Stability and Humanitarian Aid of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands.
“The programme is a part of the Dutch comprehensive approach to migration with activities that contribute to protection and decreasing irregular migration. Research and data gathering are also important components, and we hope that the insights that will be gained under COMPASS will contribute to broader knowledge sharing on migration and better-informed migration policies.”, added Schuurman. The initiative has a strong learning component, designed to increase knowledge and the uptake of lessons learned, both within the programme and beyond its parameters. COMPASS will actively contribute to global knowledge that supports countries in managing migration flows and protecting vulnerable migrants such as victims of trafficking. The implementation of COMPASS is set to start soon.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, as the donor to the COMPASS initiative, pledges its active support to partner countries to improve migration cooperation mechanisms within its long-term vision.
IOM, the leading inter-governmental organization in the field of migration, contributes its expertise as the technical implementation partner to the initiative. IOM works closely with governmental, intergovernmental and non-governmental partners in its dedication to promoting humane and orderly migration for the benefit of all.
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UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) are deeply saddened by reports of a shipwreck off the coast of Sidi Mansour, in southeast Tunisia, yesterday evening. The bodies of 41 people, including at least one child, have so far been retrieved.
According to reports from local UNHCR and IOM teams, three survivors were rescued by the Tunisian National Coast Guard. The search effort was still underway on Friday. Based on initial information, all those who perished were from Sub-Saharan Africa.
This tragic loss of life underscores once again the need to enhance and expand State-led search and rescue operations across the Central Mediterranean, where some 290 people have lost their lives so far this year. Solidarity across the region and support to national authorities in their efforts to prevent loss of life and prosecute smugglers and traffickers should be a priority.
Prior to yesterday’s incident, 39 refugees and migrants had perished off the coast near the Tunisian city of Sfax in early March. So far this year, sea departures from Tunisia to Europe have more than tripled compared to the same period in 2020.
UNHCR and IOM continue to monitor developments closely. They continue to stand ready to work with the national authorities to assist and support the survivors, and the family members of those lost.
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Ethiopian migrants return home from Yemen with IOM support in wake of tragic boat sinking
Yemen: Stranded Ethiopian migrants prepare to board an IOM-facilitated flight from Aden, Yemen, to fly home to Addis Ababa. Photo: IOM/Majed Mohammed 2021
One hundred and sixty Ethiopian migrants have returned home safely from Yemen today with the assistance of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), just one day after a perilous journey across the Gulf of Aden claimed the lives of dozens of people, including at least 16 children.
More than 32,000 migrants, predominantly from Ethiopia, remain stranded across Yemen in dire, often deadly, circumstances.
“The conditions of migrants stranded in Yemen has become so tragic that many feel they have no option but to rely on smugglers to return home,” said Jeffrey Labovitz, IOM’s Director for Operations and Emergencies.
At least 42 people returning from Yemen are believed to have died on Monday when their vessel sank off the coast of Djibouti. Last month, at least 20 people had also drowned on the same route according to survivors. IOM believes that, since May 2020, over 11,000 migrants have returned to the Horn of Africa on dangerous boat journeys, aided by unscrupulous smugglers.
“Our Voluntary Humanitarian Return (VHR) programme provides a lifeline for those stranded in a country now experiencing its seventh year of conflict and crisis. We call on all governments along the route to come together and support our efforts to allow migrants safe and dignified opportunities to travel home,” added Labovitz.
COVID-19 has had a major impact on global migration. The route from the Horn of Africa to Gulf countries has been particularly affected. Tens of thousands of migrants, hoping to work in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), now find themselves unable to complete their journeys, stranded across Djibouti, Somalia and Yemen.
While the pandemic has also caused the number of migrants arriving to Yemen to decrease from 138,000 in 2019 to just over 37,500 in 2020, the risks they face continue to rise. Many of these migrants are stranded in precarious situations, sleeping rough without shelter or access to services. Many others are in detention or being held by smugglers.
“We cannot find jobs or food here; Yemen is a problem for us,” said Gamal, a 22-year-old migrant returning on the VHR flight. “I used to sleep in the street on cardboard. I could only eat because of the charity people would give me and sometimes we were given leftovers from restaurants. I never had much to eat.”
Since October 2020, in Aden alone, IOM has registered over 6,000 migrants who need support to safely return home. Today’s flight to Addis Ababa was the second transporting an initial group of 1,100 Ethiopians who have been approved for VHR to Ethiopia. Thousands of other undocumented migrants are waiting for their nationality to be verified and travel documents to be provided.
Prior to departure on the VHR flight, IOM carried out medical and protection screenings to ensure that returnees are fit to travel and are voluntarily consenting to return. Those with special needs are identified and receive specialized counselling and support.
In Ethiopia, IOM supports government-run COVID-19 quarantine facilities to accommodate the returnees on arrival and provides cash assistance, essential items and onward transportation to their homes. The Organization also supports family tracing for unaccompanied migrant children.
Across the Horn of Africa and Yemen, IOM provides life-saving support to migrants through health care, food, water and other vital assistance.
Today’s flight was funded by the US State Department’s Bureau for Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM). Post-arrival assistance in Addis Ababa is supported by EU Humanitarian Aid and PRM.
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