The GFMD Civil Society Days 2012 brought together some 140 civil society delegates, many of them migrants themselves, with more than 50% coming from developing and low-income countries and a record number of civil society actors from Africa. Another 100 representatives of government and media and other guests and observers were also welcomed as participants in the GFMD civil society programme.
Over the two days, participants deliberated in plenary and working sessions on the central theme “Operationalizing Protection and Human Development in International Migration”. A series of recommendations resulted, including the following on labour recruitment:
Recommendation 1: To better licence, regulate and monitor recruitment, placement and employment practices
Civil society reaffirmed the call to better license, regulate and monitor recruitment actors and called for the creation of user-led systems to promote good and reliable recruitment channels, while exposing bad recruiters and violators. Civil society reiterated the strong call for increased ratification and implementation of UN and ILO conventions, including the 1990 UN Migrant Workers Convention, and ILO Conventions 181 regarding recruitment processes and 189 on domestic workers. Governments were also urged to ensure the freedom of association and worker organizing.
Benchmarks:
- Significant increase in ratification and implementation of UN and ILO conventions, including the 1990 UN migrant workers convention, and the ILO convention 181 regarding recruitment processes
- Creation of national, regional and international user-led systems, web portals and apps to promote good and reliable recruitment channels and expose bad practices
- Increased freedom of association and migrant affiliations to workers organizations