The Filipino-Swiss partnership on international migration and development

Hardly a country is more aware of the phenomenon than the Philippines: Migration has always been a strategy for individuals and their families to overcome poverty, react to conflicts, respond to economic and environmental shocks and strive for a more prosperous future. It is one of the key defining global trends shaping the 21st century. Today, labor migration is highly relevant for the development of countries the world over. This has been recognized by the UN member states who are currently working intensively in defining the Post-2015 Sustainable Development Agenda, of which migration is an integral part. In 2014, developing countries alone are estimated to receive $436 billion in remittances. For a lot of countries this is a crucial support to the national economy, with a positive impact on poverty reduction. But migration also bears significant economic, social and personal risks. Migrants are often not sufficiently protected by legal systems, and even existing laws are in many cases not consistently implemented, leaving them vulnerable to exploitation, discrimination, rights violation and abuse.

Both the Governments of Switzerland and the Philippines have been actively advocating to make migration safer and to better tap its potential for development. Collaboration between the two countries has created synergies and helped advancing and shaping the global agenda on migration and development. The Philippines’ steadfast commitment can be seen through its work not just at the national level but also the regional and international levels. It has chaired the Global Forum on Migration and Development in 2008, the Colombo Process assembling 11 Asian migrant countries in 2004, and the Abu Dhabi Dialogue in 2013-2014. In all these fora, the Philippines have put forward the recognition of migration and migrants as a global factor for sustainable development.

The Swiss Government pays special attention to labor migration by focusing on the corridors that link the sending countries of South and South-East Asia to the destination countries. It provides support to the Colombo Process in its policy dialogue with countries in the Middle East and by fostering technical exchange among its member states. Collaboration between the Philippines and Switzerland with their respective expertise is highly relevant. The ability to have bilateral agreements that are beneficial to migrant workers has been a strong point of the Philippines’ engagement in the region. To muster this know-how Switzerland has, for example, joint forces with the Philippines to harness its expertise in an expert workshop organized on bilateral labor agreements which also saw the participation of Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka. The sharing of the rich Filipino understanding will thus benefit many countries in the region in shaping and implementing their own migration policies. To help in multiplying the Filipino experience internationally, Switzerland also supports the Manila based “Migrant Forum in Asia,” a vibrant network of civil society organizations advocating for the rights of migrants not only in Asia but globally.

Migration and specifically remittances not only have a positive long term economic development impact. They have a significant potential to shape social policies and can even be of critical support in times of natural disasters. Last year’s Typhoon Yolanda was a case in point. Money sent home by OFWs in the weeks after this tragic event contributed greatly to the relief of the affected population. In this respect, an innovative initiative — building on the comprehensive Filipino approach to migration and financially supported by Switzerland — was launched in the Western Visayas, establishing a mechanism of pooling collective remittances to strengthen the region’s disaster risk response operations. The experiences that will be made through this Swiss-Filipino cooperation can hopefully be replicated in other parts of the world to the benefit of communities at risk by natural disasters.

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(Ivo Sieber is the Ambassador of Switzerland.)