INTRODUCTION TO THE PROGRAMME 

a. Context

Every year an estimated two million Asian women migrate to other countries to seek work, primarily as a family survival strategy. They courageously leave all that is familiar to them to face unknown risks. Women migrant workers are vulnerable to exploitation because they are marginalized in multiple ways by society. Gender-based discrimination and limited work options due to low skill levels contribute greatly to this situation. Domestic workers may be at particular risk of abuse and exploitation because their work takes place behind the closed doors of private homes.

The number of Asian women migrants has increased steadily over the last decade and they now make up at least 50% of all migrants in Asia, with a majority employed as domestic workers.  In countries such as Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and the Philippines, women account for between 60 to 80 percent of migrants. Their remittances contribute significantly to their home country economies while their labour benefits employment country economies, a double contribution to development and poverty reduction. Despite this, societies allow women migrant workers to be subjected to human rights violations both during the migration process and in the workplace.

b. Programme Goal

UNIFEM’s mandate is to promote women’s human rights and empower women from a rights-based perspective.  The UNIFEM Asia-Pacific and Arab States Regional Programme on Empowering Women Migrant Workers in Asia 2001-2007 takes a gender and rights-based development approach to addressing the concerns of women migrant workers and ensuring their rights are recognised and respected. It was awarded the International Prize for Pioneering Development Projects from the Arab Gulf Programme for United Nations Development Organizations in 2003. The Programme is currently being implemented in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Jordan, Lao PDR, Nepal, the Philippines and Thailand.

c. Objectives

• The programme works at global, regional and national levels and its objectives are to:

• empower women migrant workers in countries of origin and employment by advocating for changes in policy, institutional and social environments that will allow women to claim their rights and share the benefits of migrating for work;

• promote the use of international treaties such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) to address issues;

• promote policy dialogue, advocacy and sharing of good practice between governments; and

• strengthen women migrant workers’ capacities and their economic and social security in origin and employment countries.

d. Beneficiaries and Partners

The programme focuses on women migrant domestic workers, partnering with national governments, civil society organisations, the private sector, academic institutions, regional and international bodies to achieve its objectives.

e. Programme Strategies

Key strategies are to:

• mainstream gender-related migration concerns into national development plans, policies and strategies;

• advocate for policy and legal reforms that empower and protect women migrant workers;

• strengthen institutional and socio-economic environments through advocacy, increasing capacity, facilitating links and exchanges, and piloting innovative initiatives;

• promote dialogue and partnerships between governments, agencies, NGOs, the private sector and other stakeholders to address global, regional, and multisectoral dimensions of migration and to ensure ownership and sustainability of initiatives; promote regulation of recruitment;

• facilitate training and service provision from the pre-recruitment to reintegration stage; and

• raise awareness of the issues and change perceptions among migrant women workers, other key stakeholders and the general public.

Update: 5 Sep 06