The Egyptian Ministry for Immigration and Egyptian Expatriate Affairs and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) have hosted Egypt’s first international partners round table on harnessing the development impact of migration.
Noting the government’s ongoing cooperation with relevant international partners, including IOM, Immigration Minister Nabila Makram Abdel Shahid said, “The Government of Egypt is committed to continue its efforts to engage Egyptian expatriate communities in development initiatives in Egypt, while ensuring protection of their rights, through the development of a comprehensive policy framework and the undertaking of concrete initiatives to foster engagement.”
A number of initiatives are anticipated to be developed in the context of the policy framework, including encouraging the return of qualified nationals to contribute to specific sectors of the Egyptian economy, promoting investment in local and national development plans, encouraging expatriate contributions to trade development, and protecting expatriates’ rights abroad.
IOM Egypt head of office, Amr Taha, said that, “Egypt’s USD 20 billion in remittances received in 2015 made it among the top 10 recipients of remittances worldwide. But Egyptians abroad contribute in many more ways. They also support trade and business networks, invest in their communities of origin, and transfer knowledge and expertise.”
The government’s commitment to support migrants and migration—made under the country’s 2014 Constitution and 2030 Sustainable Development Strategy, as well as the United Nations’ 2030 Sustainable Development Goals—will be advanced with the expected initiatives.
