20 March 2015 – Philippine Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Corazon “Dinky” Soliman on March 16 conveyed to Envoy Professor Walter Kaelin of the Nansen Initiative (NI) the continuing support of the Philippines for the NI advocacy of establishing and advancing principles on cross-border displacement of people including overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and migrants due to natural disasters and climate change.
Secretary Soliman, who is Head of the Philippine delegation to the 3rd United Nations World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (3WCDRR), held talks with Professor Kaelin on the sidelines of the 3WCDRR in the Sendai International Conference Center. She was joined in the meeting by National Economic and Development Authority Deputy Director General Margarita R. Songco.
Professor Kaelin gave a brief update on NI’s consultations with stakeholders/partners and developments in the hoped-for principles and guidelines on the cross-border displacement of people. He also discussed the possible way forward for the NI after its conclusion in October 2015, including a new mechanism in the inter-agency Global Migration Group, Inited Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) or International Organization for Migration (IOM), and the forming of a group of interested states to continue the process, like the existing Steering Group that includes the Philippines as a member.
Professor Kaelin, a renown Swiss legal expert on refugees, extended an invitation to the Philippines to the NI High-Level Meeting in Geneva in mid-October. The Nansen Initiative is a state-led, inter-governmental and informal process seeking to forge a global consensus on principles and guidelines for addressing the cross-border displacement of persons due to natural disasters and climate change.
The NI, launched in 2011, is managed by a Steering Group, a Consultative Committee, an Envoy and a small Secretariat. The DSWD, National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, Climate Change Commission and Department of Foreign Affairs are the Philippine agencies liaising with the NI.
Secretary Soliman assured Professor Kaelin of the continuing support of the Philippines for the NI and its advocacy even beyond October as it seeks global action on two critical issues for the Philippines, namely, the well-being of OFWs and migrants in general, and advancement of Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation.
The Secretary informed Professor Kaelin that the Philippines will be well-represented in the upcoming NI High-Level Meeting in October in Geneva and will support the outcomes of the NI process. She likewise said that the Philippines will promote the NI advocacy among the ASEAN members. END