DFA Assistant Secretary for Migration Affairs Robert O. Ferrer, Jr. (fifth from left) and Philippine Ambassador to Thailand and Permanent Representative to UNESCAP H.E. Millicent Cruz Paredes (fifth from right) with the Philippine Delegation to the Second Asia-Pacific Review of the Implementation of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM)
BANGKOK, 12 FEBRUARY 2025 - The Philippines championed the One-Country Team Approach in the implementation of the United Nations Global Compact for Migration at the regional multi-stakeholder meeting held in Thailand.
The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), together with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), hosted the Second Asia-Pacific Regional Review of the Implementation of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) on 04-06 February 2025 at the UN Conference Center in Bangkok.
The Philippine delegation was led by Assistant Secretary for Migration Affairs of the Department of Foreign Affairs Robert O. Ferrer, Jr. and consisted of representatives from the Department of Migrant Workers, Commission on Population and Development, National Economic and Development Authority, and the Philippine Embassy in Bangkok. The government delegation also engaged members of Philippine civil society and non-governmental organizations present.
Assistant Secretary Robert O. Ferrer, Jr. delivering remarks at the meeting (Photo courtesy of ESCAP)
In the Philippines’ country statement, Assistant Secretary Ferrer proudly shared that the Philippines has come a long way in addressing migration issues and implementing the GCM since voting for its adoption in 2018. He credited the strong collaboration among Philippine agencies and the Philippine government’s dynamic partnership with other governments and like-minded states, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and civil society with the significant gains achieved by the country in protecting Filipino migrants across the globe.
Commission of Population and Development Executive Director Lisa Grace Bersales, one of the panelists in a roundtable on improving value-driven and evidence-based policymaking, urged the Regional Commission to look into the welfare, not just of labor migrants, but more importantly of the families they leave behind, citing the increasing incidents of adolescent pregnancy of children of overseas migrant workers in the Philippines.
During the panel discussion’s open forum, Department of Migrant Workers Assistant Secretary Mario Zinampan underscored that effective migration governance can be achieved with evidence-based policies, multi-stakeholder collaboration, and principled international cooperation.
DMW Assistant Secretary Marion Zinampan delivers a statement at the plenary (left); CPD Undersecretary Lisa Grace Bersales served as a panellist at the roundtable discussion on improving value-driven and evidence-based policy-making and public debate, and enhancing cooperation on migration. (Photos courtesy of ESCAP)
At the closing session, Assistant Secretary Ferrer, on behalf of the participants, congratulated and thanked the Chair and Vice Chairs of the Bureau and the ESCAP Secretariat for successfully organizing and presiding over the meeting. He reaffirmed the Philippines’ commitment to the GCM despite global challenges.
Since the GCM’s adoption in 2018, the Philippines has taken on an active role in ensuring the agreement’s effective implementation by chairing the first regional review in 2022; serving as one of the GCM “Champion Countries”; and contributing to the Migration Multi-Partner Trust Fund (MPTF), the funding mechanism to implement GCM. The Philippines is the largest non-traditional donor globally to the Trust Fund. END
Members of the Philippine delegation together with representatives of Philippine non-governmental and civil society organizations.
