IOM Council 113th session- General Debate

Chair, Director-General, Deputy Director-Generals, distinguished Delegates,

Sweden aligns itself with the statement made by the EU on behalf of its Member States and by Ukraine on behalf of a group of states.

Allow me to begin by stating that Sweden condemns the indiscriminate attacks of Russia against civilians and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine. Europe is experiencing the worst displacement crisis since the Second World War. IOM has done a remarkable work delivering support to those affected in Ukraine and the surrounding region.

It is clear that the work of IOM is as important as ever. Sweden would like to take this opportunity to reiterate its support to IOM. We express our deepest appreciation for the important, challenging and often dangerous work that IOM staff around the world carry out every day. We see you - we appreciate you.

We also want to extend our compliments to IOM for its continued stewardship of the UN Network on Migration, its guidance of the implementation of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, and for successfully conducting the first International Migration Review Forum in May this year. The adoption of the GCM marked a new era for international cooperation on migration and Sweden would like to take this opportunity to reaffirm its commitment to the compact.

We face a number of unprecedented and parallel challenges in the field of global migration, none of which can be solved without international cooperation. The way forward must entail a comprehensive approach. Rights and obligations must be respected at all stages, and by all parties. This includes the international obligation to protect those in need of protection. It also includes a functioning system for return, readmission and reintegration that ensures individuals can be properly received without undue delay. More efforts need to be made in the area of irregular migration, including combatting human trafficking and smuggling, while ensuring adequate response mechanisms for victims.

Chair,

IOM has had an extraordinary year, scaling up its presence in new and protracted crises around the globe. However, the continuous rapid growth of the organisation underscores the need to continue efforts to ensure the organisation is fit-for-purpose.

We welcome progress made over the course of the year in the area of institutional development and organizational effectiveness, including progress under the Internal Governance Framework.

We applaud efforts to improve the capacity of the organisation to prevent and respond to Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, and Sexual Harassment. It is imperative that this work go on, and to ensure that both investigative, legal and human resources functions are adequately resourced to handle cases.  

The budget reform achieved this year was the result of a lot of hard work, determination and a spirit of compromise shown both by the IOM leadership, the IOM bureau and Member States. It was a strong manifestation of support for the crucial role IOM plays. We hope IOM can keep building on this momentum and for efforts to ensure a sustainable funding model for the organisation to continue.

Finally, I would like to again express our appreciation for IOM and its staff.

Thank you!