INTERNATIONAL MIGRANTS DAY: DELTA HOLDS STAKEHOLDERS ENGAGEMENT SUMMIT, ROAD WALK.

INTERNATIONAL MIGRANTS DAY: DELTA HOLDS STAKEHOLDERS ENGAGEMENT SUMMIT, ROAD WALK

In commemoration of the 2023 International Day of Migrants, a -one day stakeholders engagement summit to raise more awareness against irregular migration has been organised in Delta State with the theme: Safe and Orderly Migration, what you need to know, have and do .

The International Day of Migrants is celebrated globally on December 18.

Speaking at the event, the Delta State Solicitor-General and Permanent Secretary in Ministry of Justice, Mr. Omamuzo Erebe, represented by Mrs. Juliet Ojefia the Director of Peoples Right Department said that the focus was to leverage on the theme of the event to sensitise youths who were mostly victims of irregular migration about the dangers association with it and to provide them with the understanding of the processes they needed to adhere for safe and orderly migration.

Erebe,  commended the taskforce and committee on irregular migration for being instrumental in shaping policies that prioritized the well-being of migrants and for their unwavering dedication to the course, stressed the need for collective efforts towards tackling irregular migration.

In a keynote address, the Coordinator of the Taskforce on Irregular Migration, Mrs. Nwanze Ijeoma , who said that the stakeholders engagement summit was targeted at the youths populace to commemorate the International Day of Migrants, noted that the State Taskforce on Irregular Migration was also saddled with the responsibility of coordinating the State Reintegration Committee.

Mrs. Nwanze reiterated that the International Day of Migrants was set aside to raise awareness on rights of migrants ,  the consequences and the dangers of irregular migration as well as the need to practice safe and orderly migration.

She recalled that the Taskforce on Irregular Migration was set up in the State by the immediate past administration after going through the  alarming reports that so many Deltans were being trafficked irregularly, adding that part of their mandates was to raise awareness to the public , particularly the youths  who she said were the targets of the smugglers.

Mrs. Nwanze told migrants that if they must travel outside the country, they should do so in a genuine manner by making information and enquiries that would be of benefits to them,  stressing that most people had been subjected to irregular migration due to ignorance.

She reminded migrants that there were several empowerment programmes by the Delta State Government for youths in the State that would assist them to harness their potentials.

While saying that irregular migration had been reduced in the State, Mrs. Nwanze hinted that there would be a road walk in Asaba, the State Capital to sensitise the people against irregular migration.

Earlier in their goodwill messages, the Permanent Secretary in the Delta State Ministry of Youths Development, Ngozi Mogbolu, a Deputy Controller of Immigration in charge of Migration in the State, Mrs. Okoye Azuka Tessy and  the Delta State Director of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mr. Chris Anyabuine as well as the representative of the International Organization on Migration, Mr. Ojo Olufisayo described the world migrants day as significant and called on youths to desist from desperate migration.

They explained that the stakeholders engagement summit was aimed at providing them with a platform to appraise their achievements so far in fighting irregular migration.

Ojo Olufisayo, specifically said that the International Organization on Migration had contacted about 12675 migrants and initiated reintegration for about 5127 while reintegration for  7548 migrants had  been completed.