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DSG/SM/992

Deputy Secretary-General Calls on General Assembly to Approve Draft Agreement Facilitating Deeper Ties between United Nations, Organization for Migration

Following is UN Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson’s briefing to the General Assembly on relations between the United Nations and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) today:

I am very glad to be here, together with Stephen Mathias, Assistant Secretary-General for Legal Affairs, to discuss the relationship between the United Nations and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

I thank you, Mr. President, for your active interest and engagement in matters related to refugees and migrants, and for very skilfully leading the discussions with Members States on these issues.

When I last reported to you in April of this year, along with Ambassador William Swing, the Director General of the IOM, we both underscored the close relationship between the IOM and the United Nations, the importance of migration and the role of the United Nations in this area.

The number of international migrants is estimated to be 244 million people; the number of persons forcibly displaced within and across borders has reached a staggering 65 million.  This figure is unlikely to drop significantly soon as displacement situations become more protracted, new outflows continue, and voluntary return is at a record low.

The multiple and large refugee and migration flows mean that a closer working relationship between the United Nations and IOM is needed more than ever.  Let me first state that background information on the relationship between the IOM and the United Nations can be found in the Secretary-General’s letter to the President of the General Assembly on United Nations/IOM cooperation on 1 April 2016.

I would like to briefly recall to Member States the following recent interactions with IOM:

In November 2015, the IOM Council tasked its Director General to explore how to improve the relationship between the United Nations and IOM.  Following consultations between the two Secretariats, the Director General of IOM on 10 March 2016 informed the Secretary-General that he was prepared to enter into formal discussions on a draft relationship agreement.  He requested the Secretary-General to facilitate the process.

The General Assembly, at the Secretary-General’s request, on 27 April 2016 approved the inclusion of an agenda item on United Nations-IOM cooperation, and subsequently invited the Secretary-General to take steps towards an agreement for the Assembly’s consideration.  The draft Agreement was approved by the IOM Council on 30 June.  It is contained in the Secretary-General’s recent note on 8 July.  The Secretary-General’s note also contains a draft resolution on the agreement.

Looking ahead, the Secretary-General and I hope that the General Assembly will approve the draft Agreement at the end of this month.  I am glad that the President of the General Assembly mentioned the 25 July date for this.  Upon approval, the IOM will become a “related organization” to the United Nations.

The Secretary-General also hopes that the high-level meeting of the Assembly on addressing large movements of refugees and migrants, scheduled for 19 September, could be the occasion when the agreement is signed.  The Agreement could then be signed by the Secretary-General and the Director General of the IOM.

In preparing and negotiating the draft, the Executive Office of the Secretary-General and Office of Legal Affairs have consulted with all relevant United Nations offices, funds and programmes, including those which deal directly with the protection of migrants, such as UNODC, [United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime] DESA [Department of Economic and Social Affairs], OHCHR [Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights] and UNHCR [Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees].

In essence, the draft Agreement sets out a framework for deeper cooperation between the two organizations.  While stating the principles upon which that cooperation is based, the draft Agreement is mainly procedural and administrative in nature.  It further facilitates the IOM’s participation in United Nations coordination mechanisms and meetings.

The draft expressly states that expenses resulting from any cooperation or provision of services pursuant to this Agreement shall be subject to separate arrangements between the United Nations and the IOM.  Substantive and technical areas of cooperation will be addressed separately between the United Nations and United Nations offices, funds and programmes and the IOM.  And of course, existing mandates of respective United Nations entities in the areas of migration and refugees will not be affected.

In closing, let me say that we are all aware of the profound anguish of the world’s refugees and the yearnings of the world’s migrants.  Let us recognize that these many millions of people are looking to us, and to the United Nations, for protection and assistance.  We must do everything we can to strengthen our efforts to save lives, provide shelter and promote pathways towards safety and dignity.

This challenge is a matter of our common humanity and is crucial for the standing of the United Nations.  In today’s world, it is with that spirit of cooperation and solidarity in mind that we at the request of Member States of the United Nations and IOM, have forged this draft Agreement.

It is my hope that the General Assembly will approve it unanimously and with a full commitment to realize the great promise of this relationship.

For information media. Not an official record.