Care work and labour migration in ASEAN

National Tripartite Preparatory Workshops for the 17th ASEAN Forum on Migrant Labour

National tripartite preparatory workshops for the 17th ASEAN Forum on Migrant Labour (AFML) were held in several ASEAN member states to assess stakeholders' progress in implementing the previous AFML recommendations and discuss the theme of the 17th AFML. In addition, preparatory workshops were held in Myanmar (community-based organizations only), and by Employers' organizations and Workers' organizations.

“Care work and labour migration in ASEAN”

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

The 17th AFML was hosted on 13-14 November 2024 in Vientiane, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, by the Government of Lao People’s Democratic Republic as the current chair of the ASEAN Committee on Migrant Workers (ACMW).

The 17th AFML carried the overall theme “Care work and labour migration in ASEAN” and covered two thematic sessions:

Sub-theme 1: Meeting care needs through labour migration.
Sub-theme 2: Enhancing protection and promotion of the rights of migrant care workers

National tripartite preparatory workshops for the 17th AFML were held in several ASEAN Member States to take stock of the progress of stakeholders in implementing the previous AFML recommendations and to discuss the theme of the 17th AFML. These meetings were supported by the International Labour Organization (ILO) TRIANGLE in ASEAN programme, which is a partnership between the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), Global Affairs Canada (GAC), and the ILO.

The following dates were set for the preparatory workshops: