QCOSTARICA (EFE) Representatives from 13 Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) countries met this November 3 and 4 in Costa Rica to participate in the Regional Dialogue “Migration normalization / regularization: Challenges and opportunities for the integration of the migrant population in LAC” , organized by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).
The objective of the event was to promote a space for exchange and collective construction to address the phenomenon of migratory flows that have increased in the region, as well as to identify success factors and lessons learned in the regularization processes implemented by different countries to normalize the migratory situation of foreigners in an irregular situation.
In the last decade, LAC went from being a region of origin of migrants to becoming a receiving region of intra-regional migration and international migrants in transit. Since 2015, the number of emigrants from LAC increased 18.5% to reach 43 million people in 2020 and this figure continues to grow.
“The integration of migrants offers an opportunity for host communities and for the growth of the region. Through strategic investments, it is possible to channel their potential to contribute to the development of local economies,” said Felipe Muñoz, Head of the IDB’s Migration Unit.
With this perspective, during the dialogue, the group evaluated the effects of migratory regularization and normalization on social integration, access to employment and the fiscal contribution of migrants. As part of the exchange, the participants visited the SIFAIS Foundation this Thursday, which develops socio-educational programs for the Nicaraguan migrant population in the La Carpio settlement, in San José, with the support of the IDB.
The meeting had the participation of the General Directorate of Migration and Immigration and other organizations of Costa Rica, as well as homologous ministries and institutions of each participating country.
“We know that there is no single way to respond to the migration challenge and, for this reason, we have created this space for dialogue in order to learn from the work carried out by the different countries in the region. It is not an easy task, but they have the support of the IDB to find solutions and turn those challenges into development opportunities,” said Fernando Quevedo, IDB Representative in Costa Rica and General Manager of the Department of Central America, Haiti, Mexico, Panama and Dominican Republic.
