9th ASEAN Forum on Migrant Labour National Tripartite Preparatory Meetings

Background

The 9th ASEAN Forum on Migrant Labour (AFML) will be held on 9-10th November in Vientiane, Lao PDR and will be hosted by the Government of Lao PDR as the current Chair of the ASEAN and the ACMW.

The 9th AFML will carry the overall theme: “Better Quality of Life for ASEAN Migrant Workers through Strengthened Social Protection”.

The meeting will have two thematic session:

• Theme 1: Current situation of social protection of migrant workers in ASEAN; and,
• Theme 2: Working towards the portability of social security of migrant workers in ASEAN.

The ASEAN Forum on Migrant Labour is an open platform for the review, discussion and exchange of best practices and ideas between governments, workers’ and employers’ organizations, and civil society stakeholders on key issues facing migrant workers in South East Asia. Each year the Forum develops recommendations to advance the implementation of the principles of the Declaration on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers (Cebu Declaration).

The Forum provides an opportunity to share stakeholder activities to implement the recommendations from past Forums in Hanoi 2010, Bali 2011, Siem Reap 2012, Bandar Seri Begawan 2013, Nay Pyi Taw 2014, and Kuala Lumpur, 2015, as well as the experience of implementing the Declaration on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers.

National Tripartite Preparatory Meetings for the 9th ASEAN Forum on Migrant Labour will be held in several ASEAN Member States to take stock on progress to date and implementation of previous forums’ recommendations at the national level, to discuss the 9th AFML’s proposed theme, and to prepare national level recommendations for the 9th ASEAN Forum on Migrant Labour.

Objectives

The 9th ASEAN Forum on Migrant Labour will take stock of the implementation of past AFML Recommendations and discuss the two afore-mentioned sub-themes during this meeting.

The national preparatory meetings are organized with the objective to:

• Take stock and share information on the progress to date and implementation of 8th AFML Recommendations and past Recommendations by national tripartite stakeholders
• Discuss the 9th AFML’s theme and its sub-themes as well as identify recommendations made by national tripartite partners on these themes
• Develop a report on the national tripartite preparatory meeting for sharing at the 9th AFML