The 2019 Ecuador Chairmanship

The Ecuadorian Chairmanship of 2019 comes at a very timely moment for global migration governance: The magnitude of international migration and forced displacement has led the international community to address these issues at the highest political level. The affirmation of two Global Compacts -- one on Refugees (GCR) and the other for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) -- emphasizes the need for cooperation to address these global challenges in a comprehensive manner, which ensures the safety, rights and dignity of all migrants and refugees and harnesses their contributions to development at the local, national, regional and global level.

Before assuming the GFMD Chairmanship, Ecuador has been actively involved in the GFMD as a member of the Steering Group, the Ad Hoc Working Group on the GCM and 2030 Agenda, and the GFMD Expert Review Team. It was also co-chair of several GFMD Roundtable Sessions, and has actively participated in the Migration Laboratory. Outside of the GFMD, Ecuador was significantly involved in the development of the GCM, putting it in an excellent position to carry the GFMD forward in close coordination with this process.

In this context, Ecuador, under the leadership of designated Chair of the GFMD 2019 Mr. Santiago Javier Chávez Pareja, Vice Minister for Human Mobility of Ecuador, brings to the GFMD process its expertise as a major receiving country for migrants and refugees with world-recognized migration policies, and an active voice in international migration affairs. It also represents a return of the Chairmanship to Latin America for the first time since 2010.

The Ecuadorian Chairmanship is focused on the central theme: “Sustainable approaches to human mobility: Upholding rights, strengthening state agency, and advancing development through partnerships and collective action.” Under this theme, the main three substantive focuses of the Chairmanship are:

1. Joint responses to mixed migration flows: Partnerships and collective action to protect rights.
2. Migration narratives and communication: What role, responsibility and resources do governments have?
3. Addressing human mobility as part of urban and rural development strategies.

The 2019 GFMD Chair has also set a number of concrete priorities for continuing and enhancing the GFMD process this year. Specifically, the Chair has laid out a plan to follow up on the recommendations of the Ten-Year Review Report released in 2018; support the implementation and follow up of international commitments, notably the GCM and the 2030 Agenda; and convene a number of thematic and regional meetings throughout the year to address substantive and institutional priorities.

The Chair’s substantive and operational priorities are outlined in the GFMD 2019 Concept Paper Information concerning the GFMD preparatory activities leading to the Quito Summit can be found here.

Twelfth Meeting of the Global Forum on Migration and Development

19-24 January, 2020, Quito, Ecuador

The Twelfth GFMD Summit was held in Quito, 19-24 January 2020. The Summit welcomed over 1000 participants, including representatives of over 110 states and 35 GFMD Observer organisations, and was the first GFMD Summit to host civil society, private sector, local authority, youth and academia representatives as integrated participants in the Summit. 

 In a packed week of programming, the Summit hosted a variety of events, including for the first time incorporating the Civil Society Day, Business Mechanism programme, and the Mayoral Forum on Human Mobility, Migration and Development into the official Summit programme. In addition, the GFMD Chair Ecuador also hosted 12 side events, and the second edition of the Youth Forum, at the Summit Venue.

The Summit Roundtables, under the three guiding themes of the Chairmanship, were focused on the following issues:

1. Joint responses to mixed migration flows: Partnerships and collective action to protect rights

• Roundtable 1.1: Providing regular pathways from crisis to safety
• Roundtable 1.2: Roundtable 1.2: Facilitating social and economic inclusion

2. Migration narratives and communication: What role, responsibility and resources do governments have?

• Roundtable 2.1: Shaping public narratives on migration and migrants
• Roundtable 2.2: Communicating effectively with migrants

3. Addressing human mobility as part of urban and rural development strategies.

• Roundtable 3.1: Supporting arrival cities through policy coherence and multi-stakeholders partnerships

• Roundtable 3.2: Harnessing migration for rural transformation and development

The Summit also featured a new format for the Common Space, utilizing interactive 'World Café' style sessions to encourage to interact, share their views, and form new partnerships.

Following the Official Closing Ceremony of the Summit, the GFMD 2019 Chair Ecuador provided a space for a voluntary dialogue on the GCM. The Dialogue allowed interested government and non-state stakeholders to exchange experiences and concrete initiatives, and to share lessons learned and progress to date, in the implementation of the GCM. 

Read more about the Summit programme and outcomes here: