Ashgabat, Turkmenistan June 17 & 18 2015  The International Organization for Migration (IOM) sub regional office for Central Asia in cooperation with the Government of Turkmenistan organized  a Regional Forum on “International Cooperation in the area of Migration and Emergency Preparedness” with high level participants from Central Asian countries and Afghanistan.

The objective of the regional forum was to familiarise  Governments of the region with the IOM’s Migration Crisis Operation Framework (MCOF) as well as on international good practices in disaster risk reduction and emergency preparedness and  to create a regional network of focal points for further coordinated efforts to potential man-made or natural disasters in the region.

The participants of the forum have acknowledged the importance of IOM Migration Crisis Operational Framework (MCOF) recognizing the critical importance of ensuring that emergency/border authorities as well as other relevant authorities, in close cooperation with international organizations and other international counterparts, are prepared to respond appropriately to cross-border movements arising from natural or man-made disasters fully guaranteeing the rights of vulnerable groups, placing particular emphasis on humanitarian aspects of migration crises.

The participants of the regional event shared a common vision that the regional forum is regarded as a preparatory event for conducting regional consultations ahead of the World Humanitarian Summit (WHS)  to be held in Istanbul, 26-27 May 2016,

As the IOM Regional Director, Mrs Renate Held, IOM Regional Office in Vienna, stated “IOM confirms its commitment to work closely with its member states in addressing issues of interest and concern in the framework of the upcoming World Humanitarian Summit which aims to set the agenda for a more inclusive and diverse humanitarian system in order to make humanitarian action more effective. All participants here should be viewed as stakeholders in the upcoming World Humanitarian Summit, which is a chance to put forward recommendations relevant to the Central Asian region. It is important to explore further the synergies between humanitarian assistance and development assistance and how the rapprochement of those two areas can benefit countries and societies.” 

The regional event was hosted and co-funded by the Government of Turkmenistan within the framework of the 20^th anniversary of the status of neutrality and on the adoption of the UN General Assembly Resolution on “Permanent neutrality of Turkmenistan”.

The regional event is supported under the IOM project “Addressing Mixed Migration Flows through capacity building in Central Asia” funded by the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM) of the U.S. Department of State which aims to build the capacity of Central Asian States to manage mixed migration flows, ensure protection of human rights of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers through strengthening regional cooperation and dialogue. 

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