Press Release
December 16, 2005
International Migrants Day CelebrationWith or without remittances, women heads of households still face discrimination
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic [INSTRAW – http://www.un-instraw.org/] ---“The increasing economic and social contributions of women migrant workers through remittances has not been able to eradicate the double discrimination they face,” emphasized Carmen Moreno, Director of the International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW) on the occasion of International Migrants Day.
At present, almost half of the 200 million persons who live and work outside their countries are women. As the percentage of women migrants seeking a better life has increased at a faster pace than that of men, the economic role of these women migrants has also changed.
“More and more women migrate on their own as main providers and heads of households and the number of women categorized as migrant ‘dependents’ of husbands has declined,” points out Mar Garcia, INSTRAW’s research specialist for migration and remittances issues.
Remittances sent by migrants to their countries of origin have already tripled the volume of official development assistance and can be a contribution towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Nevertheless, discrimination against women migrants persists.
They are the ones who suffer the most negative consequences of migration, including poor working conditions and sexual exploitation. Most of them find work in informal sectors rife with irregularities and high turnover rates, such as domestic service, care-giving, and the services sector in general.
In this context, INSTRAW stresses the importance of the recently adopted resolution on violence against women migrant workers through which the United Nations General Assembly calls upon governments to incorporate a gender perspective in all policies on international migration.
In its report, the Global Commission on International Migration (GCIM) also recommends giving greater attention to the social and legal protection of women migrants. Despite the increasing feminization of migration, few governments of developed countries have formulated policies that respect the human and labour rights of women migrant workers. Few developing countries have initiated education and assistance programmes specifically aimed at women migrants.
INSTRAW reiterates the call of the United Nations Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, urging all Member States to become parties to the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrants and Members of their Families which to date has only been ratified by 34 Member States. INSTRAW considers that the feminization of migratory flows should be duly reflected in research on the potential of remittances in terms of human development. Only then can women migrants emerge from under the cloak of invisibility.
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For further information, please contact (in French, Spanish or English):Hilary AndersonCommunications OfficerINSTRAWTel: +1 809 685 21 11 ext. 223E-mail: handerson@un-instraw.org
Website: www.un-instraw.org
About INSTRAW
The United Nations International Institute of Research and Training for the Promotion of Women (INSTRAW) is the only United Nations Institute mandated to promote and undertake research and training programmes at the international level to contribute to the advancement of women and gender equality worldwide. Within the framework of the current debate around the impact of international migration on development, INSTRAW has opened a space for the analysis of the interrelation between gender, migration, remittances and development through a series of activities that include integrating gender perspectives into research and projects on remittances. For more information, please visit our website: www.un-instraw.org
Contact us
http://www.un-instraw.org
Tel: (809) 685-2111
Fax: (809) 685-2117
e-mail: instraw@un-instraw.org
Address:Calle Cesar Nicolás
Penson 102-ASanto Domingo,
Dominican Republic
December 16, 2005
International Migrants Day CelebrationWith or without remittances, women heads of households still face discrimination
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic [INSTRAW – http://www.un-instraw.org/] ---“The increasing economic and social contributions of women migrant workers through remittances has not been able to eradicate the double discrimination they face,” emphasized Carmen Moreno, Director of the International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW) on the occasion of International Migrants Day.
At present, almost half of the 200 million persons who live and work outside their countries are women. As the percentage of women migrants seeking a better life has increased at a faster pace than that of men, the economic role of these women migrants has also changed.
“More and more women migrate on their own as main providers and heads of households and the number of women categorized as migrant ‘dependents’ of husbands has declined,” points out Mar Garcia, INSTRAW’s research specialist for migration and remittances issues.
Remittances sent by migrants to their countries of origin have already tripled the volume of official development assistance and can be a contribution towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Nevertheless, discrimination against women migrants persists.
They are the ones who suffer the most negative consequences of migration, including poor working conditions and sexual exploitation. Most of them find work in informal sectors rife with irregularities and high turnover rates, such as domestic service, care-giving, and the services sector in general.
In this context, INSTRAW stresses the importance of the recently adopted resolution on violence against women migrant workers through which the United Nations General Assembly calls upon governments to incorporate a gender perspective in all policies on international migration.
In its report, the Global Commission on International Migration (GCIM) also recommends giving greater attention to the social and legal protection of women migrants. Despite the increasing feminization of migration, few governments of developed countries have formulated policies that respect the human and labour rights of women migrant workers. Few developing countries have initiated education and assistance programmes specifically aimed at women migrants.
INSTRAW reiterates the call of the United Nations Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, urging all Member States to become parties to the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrants and Members of their Families which to date has only been ratified by 34 Member States. INSTRAW considers that the feminization of migratory flows should be duly reflected in research on the potential of remittances in terms of human development. Only then can women migrants emerge from under the cloak of invisibility.
--- END ---
For further information, please contact (in French, Spanish or English):Hilary AndersonCommunications OfficerINSTRAWTel: +1 809 685 21 11 ext. 223E-mail: handerson@un-instraw.org
Website: www.un-instraw.org
About INSTRAW
The United Nations International Institute of Research and Training for the Promotion of Women (INSTRAW) is the only United Nations Institute mandated to promote and undertake research and training programmes at the international level to contribute to the advancement of women and gender equality worldwide. Within the framework of the current debate around the impact of international migration on development, INSTRAW has opened a space for the analysis of the interrelation between gender, migration, remittances and development through a series of activities that include integrating gender perspectives into research and projects on remittances. For more information, please visit our website: www.un-instraw.org
Contact us
http://www.un-instraw.org
Tel: (809) 685-2111
Fax: (809) 685-2117
e-mail: instraw@un-instraw.org
Address:Calle Cesar Nicolás
Penson 102-ASanto Domingo,
Dominican Republic
