Benghazi: Delegation of the Moroccan House of Representatives Takes Part in the African-European Conference on Migration
Rep. Laila Dahi (Group of the National Rally of Independents) and Rep. Abdessamad Haiker (Parliamentary Caucus of Justice and Development) took part in the African-European Conference on Migration, held on May 25-27, 2024, in Benghazi, Libya, under the theme “Sustainable solutions for migration.”
The two members of the Moroccan Parliamentary Representation to the Pan-African Parliament were part of a delegation consisting of about 40 members of this continental parliamentary organization, belonging to the various regional groups of Africa, headed by Hon. Fortune Charumbira, President of the Pan-African Parliament.
Featuring the participation of more than 300 politicians, experts, media professionals, and civil society representatives, this international Conference was an opportunity to shed light on the various migration-related issues.
This conference is one of the most important meetings after the one held in Marrakesh in 2018. It sheds light on this complex issue and tries to identify its various causes and the effective solutions it requires based on a participatory approach and a holistic and forward-looking vision.
The participation of the two members of the National Representation was an opportunity to meet and hold talks with several participants and actors and to interact with the various presentations that were made and discussed. It was also an opportunity to emphasize Morocco's interest and active involvement in delivering a comprehensive model and an integrated general policy in the field of migration in accordance with the bold and proactive vision of His Majesty the King, may Allah protect him.
In this context, the two members of the delegation recalled, through the various dialogues and interventions they made during the multiple sessions of the Conference or on its sidelines, that the motives for migration, especially among African youth towards the North, are numerous and complex, led by challenging economic and living conditions, lack of opportunities to access the labor market, the search for a better life, in addition to other factors that may be related to wars, political conditions, and other advanced and renewable factors. This necessitates the adoption of a holistic approach that focuses on addressing all these causes rather than worrying about their symptoms and manifestations, which requires decision-makers and all concerned parties to find new solutions to provide favorable economic and social conditions for African youth so that they can settle in their countries and harness all their energies and expertise for their development. The members of the Moroccan House of Representatives, who were part of the delegation representing the Pan-African Parliament at this Conference, also reviewed the unique and rich Moroccan experience in dealing with the issue of migration through the 2013 National Strategy for Migration and Asylum, which adopts a humanitarian and solidarity vision of the phenomenon of migration, considering the migrant as a key actor in driving the national economy and contributing to development in Africa, thus going beyond the pure security approach that has always seen migration as a threat to national identity and a cause of instability.
The other interventions focused on the need for European and African countries to adopt a new approach to the issue of migration based on mutual respect, cooperation, and sharing roles in a fair, reasonable, and equal manner to address this phenomenon in a way that preserves the rights and dignity of migrants and provides them with the opportunity for social and economic integration in the host countries while working together to strengthen the capabilities of law enforcement agencies to block the path of human smuggling and trafficking networks.
The Conference culminated in the adoption of a final declaration in which the participants emphasized the importance of a comprehensive approach to the issue of irregular migration based on examining its actual causes, namely comprehensive development, employment, and stability. The Conference also called for the creation of the Africa Development Fund, which will be jointly managed by representatives from Africa and Europe and funded by financial contributions from European and African partners. It also called for the establishment of the Euro-African Employment Agency as a framework for cooperation and recruitment, to be based in Brussels, and the establishment of the Afro-European Migration Observatory, to be based in Benghazi.