Mongolia - In cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, IOM Mongolia has hosted a half-day national consultation in Ulaanbaatar in preparation for Mongolia’s participation in next month’s 2nd UN High-Level Dialogue on International Migration and Development (HLD).

Some 40 officials from Mongolia’s Ministries of Foreign Affairs (MFA), Population, Development and Social Protection (MPDSP), Labour, Justice/Immigration and Health attended the meeting. Representatives from various UN agencies, embassies and NGOs also participated.

Since its democratization in 1992, Mongolia has witnessed record numbers of its citizens choosing to move abroad, including to the Republic of Korea, the United States and Europe. There have also been increasing numbers of foreigners choosing to move to Mongolia, attracted by booming mining activities in the South Gobi desert.

As a migration country of origin, key challenges for Mongolia are how to engage its diaspora and protect the rights of Mongolians abroad. As a country of destination, its key priority is how to manage increasing demand for foreign labour migrants against a backdrop of high national unemployment and skills shortages in the mining and construction sectors.

As the leading global agency on migration, IOM has been asked by its 151 Member States and the UN General Assembly to support regional preparations and regional consultative processes on migration for the HLD, in cooperation with the UN Regional Commissions and other relevant entities.

Presentations made by IOM and the MPDSP were followed by an open discussion during which a number of Ministries and NGOs raised issues as to how their respective interests would be represented at the HLD. The key outcome of the event was an agreement among the stakeholders on the need to increase the coordination and inclusiveness of preparations being led by the MPDSP and the MFA.

“This national consultation provided interested Mongolian stakeholders with the opportunity to discuss key migration issues, challenges and priorities for Mongolia, in preparation for Mongolia’s participation in the HLD. It will feed into the formulation of Mongolia’s objectives, strategy and positioning at the meeting,” said IOM Mongolia Chief of Mission Pär Liljert.

For more information please contact

Oyunbileg Rentsendorj
IOM Mongolia
Tel: +976 7014 3100
Email:  orentsendorj@iom.int