BUJUMBURA June 12th (ABP) – The International Organization for Migrants (IOM) held on Monday June 11, 2018 in Bujumbura, a final validation workshop of the comparative study on labor mobility in the countries like Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Tanzania.
In addition, the four countries are at different levels of implementation of the commitments they made to the EAC as part of the joint protocol on the free movement of persons and workforce. The main recommendations that emerged from the joint protocol were based on the African Union’s legislative frameworks on migration in Africa and migration management on the continent. On that occasion, the Kenyan consultant, Ms. Robina Kyshabire SSeruwagi, said that in those member States of the East African Community (EAC), there have been many achievements that have already been noted, things that remain to be done and others that are in progress. She said the study focused on the collection of data and the experiences of migrants in general, in different countries and in the legislative framework that manages labor migration in the EAC countries. She also recalled that Burundi has a national migration policy that was developed in 2015 and that it will also soon develop a national workforce policy. Rwanda has also developed this migration policy. Kenya is developing it, while Tanzania does not have one yet.
For example, Ms. SSeruwagi recommended that those countries set up a coordination mechanism to collect and share data, and to harmonize the collection of migration data at continental and regional levels. She also pointed out that the target population of this study was all migrant workers, namely those working in the formal and informal sector, ignoring irregular migrants.
