Brussels, 06/10/2014 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 2 October, the European Commission announced that the aim of a new development project, into which it is injecting €10 million, is to promote and protect the rights of migrants moving between developing countries. The project focuses on two types of migrants - those who carry out domestic work in the recipient country (for example, house-cleaning), and those who are victims of human trafficking.
European Commissioner for Development Andris Piebalgs underscored that “this project proposes an innovative approach focusing on migration between developing countries”. He stressed “the EU's genuine and firm commitment to address human trafficking and forced labour, some of the worst forms of modern slavery” and underlined the EU's “will to improve migrants' rights”.
The funding will enable social assistance and direct protection for migrants and their families to be provided through ensuring access to health care, legal assistance, interpreting services or training to facilitate reintegration into their country of origin.
The project will also help civil society organisations better protect the rights of migrants by giving these organisations the means to create a network to exchange best practice; by contributing to the promotion of well-managed policies on migration, labour and anti-trafficking; and by encouraging dialogue between all the actors concerned (public authorities, employers' associations and the private sector).
The project is funded by the EU's Global Public Goods and Challenges programme, which is part of the Development and Cooperation Instrument. It will be implemented by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, and will target 14 countries - be they countries of origin, transit or destination. The countries concerned are Ethiopia and Zimbabwe; the Dominican Republic, Ecuador and Honduras; Indonesia, Nepal, Thailand, Kazakhstan, Russia and Tajikistan; and Jordan, Lebanon and Morocco. (AN)