By Mariama Marong
The Government of the Gambia has held a two day National Dialogue on migration, in order to establish a frank societal approach that will help mitigate irregular migration.
The event which was funded by IOM in collaboration with Government, Tango and YMCA, drew stakeholders from different government institutions including regional governors, women, political parties, civil society organisations, migrant and migrant returnee groups, youth groups, VDCs and the media, in order to dialogue on the above subject matter, at the Sir Dawda Jawara Conference Center.
Speaking to the media at the end of the dialogue, John Clarles Njie, the Chief Executive Officer of YMCA, said the whole purpose of the event was to bring different stakeholders together to discuss issues surrounding migration and people’s perspectives on irregular migration. According to Mr. Njie, the migration dialogue also sought to develop a way forward on the patterns of migration in The Gambia. The YMCA Chief Executive said the prospect of the dialogue was also aimed at creating a sense of openness and togetherness in discussing the issues of migration and how best to address the resultant situations which emanate from it. He added that the dialogue also aimed at fostering collaboration between government and other stakeholders in tackling migration problems within the country.
Omar Camara of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said Government is face with many challenges, but said despite the challenges; they have always supported migrant returnees. He said deportees and returnees are given an amount of 1000 Euros upon their arrival in the Gambia, and Government is making efforts to ensure that migrant returnees and deportees are reintegrated back in the society.
“Government is not happy with the deportation of Gambians, but most of them have illegal status in Europe and every country has their laws on who stays or not,” Mr. Camara noted. He said stakeholders are working with Government to ensure that deportees have access to their properties and be given the chance to withdraw their monies. He emphasized that it is important to criminalize smuggling; adding actors involved in smuggling people will be punished by law.
Omar Cham, youth representative at the event, said there is a huge gap on the number of opportunities created by the Government in order to control irregular migration.
“Government has to create the enabling environment to ensure that young people stay in their own country,” Cham said.
Mustapha Bojang from Kartong Village Development Committee (VDC), said in order to eradicate irregular migration, VDCs should be part of the decision making process for youth employment.
“The authorities should work hand in hand with VDCs to ensure that irregular migration is eliminated, and it is also important to pass the migration bill as to means to reduce the migration of young people and the death toll which results from these dangerous journeys, among the youth. The migration bill therefore needs to be passed urgently because the number of young people losing their lives on this dangerous journey, is alarming,” Bojang said.
Abou Barry expressed that a good number of youth who embark on this irregular journey lack hope in the country and this motivated them to take the risky journey in order to make ends meet outside. He affirmed that young people migrate because they find it difficult to live in The Gambia.
“Even with agriculture, youth and women lack access to land ownership, and this should be addressed if Government wants the youth to stay in the country,” he said. Barry said in order to address irregular migration, government should provide strategic plans to strengthen the economic base of young people, and strengthen the legal framework to criminalize human trafficking and smuggling. He also urged the government to adapt to climate smart initiatives that will lead to improve agriculture production and provide programs on coaching and monitoring youth movement along the coast.
Yusupha Gomez, the Secretary General of Lamin VDC said irregular migration by young people cannot be mitigated if government does not create the right opportunities that will be impactful to their lives, adding that unemployment and the low salary or low pay scale are some of the reasons why young people are migrating to seek greener pasture.
“The salary scale in the country is forcing young people to migrate because most of them cannot support themselves and their families with the meagre salary they earn from the jobs they secure, and irregular migration will continue if government does not improve the pay scale,” he said. He emphasized that many young people engage in irregular migration due to lack of awareness and inadequate information sharing within communities on the subject.
“Every youth wants to travel out of the country because communities tend to respect ‘semesters’ more than those in the country. This is what motivates young people particularly the youth to travel, and it will not stop if things are not changed,” Gomez said.
