Migration Profile on Nigeria - IOM Publications - International ...

with a view to its finalization. Subsequently, the document was forwarded to the
Federal Executive Council for approval. Shortly afterwards, there was a change
in government and a vacancy in the office that had initiated the policy, thus
hampering the drive for its approval. However, following a presidential directive
issued in 2009 mandating the National Commission for Refugees (NCFR) to
coordinate matters relating to migration and internally displaced persons in
Nigeria, the Commission is revisiting the policy. As a first step, inputs have been
gathered from relevant government ministries, departments and agencies based
on recent changes since the initial draft. These will be incorporated into the text
to be presented to the Federal Executive Council when approval of the policy is
sought.
Issues addressed in the draft national policy on migration include: migration
and development; migration and cross-cutting social issues; national security
and irregular movement; forced displacement; the human rights of migrants;
organized labour migration; internal migration; national population; migration
data and statistics; and funding for migration management. In addition, the
draft proposes the establishment of an agency or commission to coordinate the
different management aspects of the migration policy, among others.
Presently, the Government is considering an organized labour migration
scheme to enhance the positive benefits for migrants and their country of origin
and destination.
Other programmes related to migration and development
Although they may not directly focus on migration, there are many
government programmes aimed at national development. These include the
National/State/Local Economic Employment Development Strategies (NEEDS;
SEEDS; LEEDS). Others include the National Poverty Eradication Programme, the
Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria and the National
Directorate of Employment.
The Joint <strong>Migration</strong> and Development Initiative (JMDI) is implemented
in Nigeria by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The overall
objective of the JMDI is to support civil society organizations and local authorities
in harnessing the benefits of migration for development. JMDI aims to set
up and reinforce networks of actors working on migration and development,
identify good practice in this field and share this information with practitioners
and policymakers with a view to feeding into policymaking on migration and
development. The Initiative is implemented from Brussels as a joint partnership
70 <strong>Migration</strong> in Nigeria: A Country <strong>Profile</strong> 2009