28 November 2011

At a ceremony held at IOM Ukraine?s office a Memorandum of Cooperation was signed by The Head of the State Migration Service (SMS) Oleksandr Zabrudskyi and IOM Ukraine?s Chief of Mission Manfred Profazi. The Memorandum aims to consolidate efforts in promoting humane and orderly migration through, inter alia, addressing the challenges of irregular migration, ensuring the rights of foreigners and stateless persons, protecting victims of trafficking and promoting the reintegration of Ukrainian citizens returning from abroad.

The Head of the State Migration Service Oleksandr Zabrudskyi underlined that the SMS is honoured to have ?such an influential and respected partner as IOM?.

?IOM is committed to assisting the implementation of Ukraine?s State Migration Policy, as well as the EU ? Ukraine Visa Liberalization Action Plan and Readmission Agreement. We highly value our partnership with the State Migration Service as the central executive body responsible for migration management? said IOM Ukraine?s Chief of Mission Manfred Profazi.

The International Organization for Migration launched cooperation with the SMS at the moment of its founding in December 2010. In September this year, the IOM-SMS Action Plan through 2012 was adopted. According to the Memorandum, further cooperation between IOM Ukraine and the State Migration Service will include preparation of comments for draft legal acts in the field of migration; exchange of information and analytical materials on migration; joint evaluation and monitoring of standards compliance in temporary custody facilities for irregular migrants; promotion of the creation of a system of Assisted Voluntary Return and Reintegration in Ukraine; development of proposals to harness the link between migration and development, etc.