2 May 2008—The Philippines, under the leadership the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), hosted the first ASEAN Forum on Migrant Labour at the Mandarin Hotel in Makati City on 24-25 April 2008.  DOLE Secretary Marianito Roque gave the welcome remarks at the Foum’s opening ceremony on 24 April.

DOLE organized the Forum with the assistance of the ASEAN Secretariat and the International Labour Organization (ILO).  Most of the participants from the 10 ASEAN Member States came from the labor agencies and ministries of foreign affairs.

The Forum served as a venue where ASEAN Member States had an informal exchange of information and best practices on the subject of labor migration.  The discussion focused on the Member States’ labor migration policies and actual experiences in labor migration management, either as sending or receiving countries.  The participants also shared their views on the outstanding issues, problems and concerns related to migrant labor. 

During the open session in the Forum, the representatives of the international agencies, namely, ILO and International Organization for Migration, and the civil society organizations, namely, Scalabrini Migration Center and Migrant Forum Asia, discussed their views and interests in labor migration.

The participants of the Forum agreed to recommend to the Senior Labor Officials Meeting (SLOM), which will take place in Bangkok on 6 May 2008, that the Forum be institutionalized and held on a regular basis.  The Philippines was the first country to make the recommendation, believing that the Forum can serve a venue where broad-based issues on labor migration can be discussed.

The participants of the Forum also agreed to suggest to the SLOM the convening of the first Meeting of the ASEAN Committee on the Implementation of the Declaration on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers before the 14^th ASEAN Summit in Bangkok in December 2008.  At the 40^th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting in Manila on 30 July 2007, the ASEAN Foreign Ministers established the Committee and tasked it to develop ASEAN the Instrument on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers.   The Committee will be responsible in implementing the provisions of the ASEAN Declaration on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers, which the ASEAN Leaders signed at the 12^th ASEAN Summit in Cebu, Philippines, on 13 January 2007.

The Philippines also invited the ASEAN Member States to participate in the 2^nd Global Forum on Migration and Development that the Philippines will host in October 2008. 

The Philippine delegation to the Forum was composed of POEA Deputy Administrator Hans Cacdac (Head of Delegation), OWWA Director Alberto Valenciano and DFA Director Zaldy Patron. END