UN MPTF Launching to Support Returning Migrants during COVID-19 Crisis and its impacts

Your Excellencies, Distinguish Participants, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good morning.

On behalf of the UN development system in Cambodia and the representing the four agencies under the UN Joint Program (WHO, UNFPA, UNICEF and IOM) , I am pleased to present to you the UN Joint Programme to Support Returning Migrants in response to COVID-19 crisis and its impacts.

I would like to start by expressing sincere appreciation to the Royal Government of Cambodia, particularly to the Ministry of Interior, the sub-national governments of Siemreap, Batnay Meanchey and Battambang for the commitment and leadership in supporting the response to COVID and its impact to returning migrants and communities.

The UN in Cambodia secured support from the COVID-19 Multi Partner Trust Fund which was established to quickly respond to the pandemic, which started as a health crisis but transformed into a socio-economic crisis. Through a development emergency approach, the Fund demonstrates the UN’s joint efforts as a whole at country and global levels, in the spirit of the UN reform. In its first call for proposal, the Fund requested to develop a joint programme for immediate interventions based on the principle of ‘Building Back Better’ in a more qual and sustainable way.

Objectives of the Joint Programme

Under the overarching goal of protecting returning migrants and host communities from the risk of a large-scale transmission of COVID-19 and continuously providing them with the essential socio-economic services, it will:

1. Improve access to COVID-19 information and prevention and mitigation measures for returning migrants at point of entry; The programme will prioritize COVID-19 response by strengthening availability of screening points, preventive measures and information disseminated to returning migrants crossing both formal and informal POEs and quarantine facilities.

2. Provide essential healthcare services including awareness information (mental health and GBV support, child and maternal care) for 200,000 most vulnerable populations amongst returning migrants and host communities at quarantine facilities and areas of returns, the most vulnerable migrants such as pregnant women, GBV survivors, and children will be prioritized for an improved identification, referral process and support for follow up in the destination communities. The UN will support the deployment of 20 social workers in selected districts in the provinces of Siem Reap, Battambang and Banteay Meanchey. This support will be limited within the timeframe of the MPTF programme, but will provide a great opportunity to strengthen the government mechanism at sub-national level for the delivery of social services.

3. Mitigate mid- and long-term impact of COVID-19 on most vulnerable migrants, particularly 500 women/women-headed households, through provision of individual economic reintegration package which is specifically designed for migrants. The support needed will be provided through the Individual/ Community Group Economic Reintegration Package, specifically designed for the most vulnerable returning migrants including women/women headed households, by supporting income generating activities, tailored to the available resources within the province and market viability.

The proposed interventions follow the guiding principles from the Cambodia Master Plan for COVID-19, as well as the UN framework for the immediate socio-economic response to COVID-19 and will be implemented in three major provinces of Cambodia (Banteay Meanchey, Battambang and Siem Reap) which received a high number of returning migrants. My colleague, later on will present to you in much more details on the activities of this UN Joint program.

The uniqueness of this joint programme is its focus on client (beneficiaries) orientation and its aim to tapping into their potentials to ‘build back better’. Furthermore, given that the returning migrants/ new comers in the community were not included in any of the existing mechanism or program, the interventions proposed is to fill in the gaps and responding to their immediate needs while linking them to better reintegration and inclusion to national programs, policies and social protection mechanism and will assist successful reintegration of the migrants into the host communities so that they would not risk illegal migration back to Thailand. In the longer run, the joint programme will aim to achieve sustainable migration and better border management. Also, it will tap into migrants’ newly acquired knowledge, experiences and other assets from abroad to ‘build back better’ by creating a more sustainable, resilient and inclusive societies.

Importance of coordination with Sub-national Level

This means the joint programme will focus on devising local solutions through community innovations. Empowered communities and sub-national governments, combined with investment and capacity building support, are expected to create dynamics to drive innovation for more effective solutions to the pressing needs and the fast-changing situations.

In the longer run, our joint efforts, in particular local government leadership and multisectoral approach, are vital to strengthening national and local preparedness and response capacities and mechanisms, including for future response to similar crises.

The UN is committed to supporting the Royal Government and the people of Cambodia during this unprecedented crisis. We look forward to our continuous consultations in ensuring that the most vulnerable and marginalized populations are also integrated in all policies and guidelines, leaving no one behind.

Thank you.