The event is attended by 20 countries in the hemisphere, which supports Panama's regional leadership in the face of this growing phenomenon.
Among the confirmed Foreign Ministers is the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Panama, April 17 (2022). Panama is once again the venue for a high-level dialogue to provide comprehensive follow-up to the challenges generated by irregular migration throughout our continent, with increasingly high flows, which coincide with specific crises in the countries of origin and affect countries of transit and destination.
The high-level ministerial meeting convened by Panama with the collaboration of the United States will be held on April 19 and 20 at the Bolívar Palace, the headquarters of the Foreign Ministry, and in a hotel in the Panamanian capital.
At least 20 countries have already confirmed their attendance, expanding the participation of the first meeting to which Panama invited virtually in August 2021, during the peak of the irregular migratory movement across our borders and attended by representatives of ten governments from the continent to talk for the first time about solutions together and with a comprehensive approach that involved the security authorities and the Public Ministries and Attorney General's Offices.
In this unprecedented and successful call, marked by the restrictions of the pandemic, it was established that irregular migration responds to transnational incentives and that the response for its adequate attention, with criteria of security, solidarity, and respect for human rights, must be agreed. and with co-responsibility, distributed among countries of origin, transit, and destination.
The representatives of Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile, Ecuador, the United States, Mexico, and Peru, gathered by Panama on that first day of continental work on intercontinental and transcontinental irregular migration, recognized that the bulk of people on the move travel precariously under the false promise that they will be allowed to enter the country of destination, which for most is the United States, Canada, and Mexico, in that order, and which take several years to reach their goal, investing significant sums of money, generally managed by criminal groups with an international reach.
Based on these premises, in this week's meeting, the call has been expanded, including Caribbean countries, with which the entire continent participates, and security ministers join the foreign ministers, along with non-governmental organizations, development banks, and international multilateral institutions that will attend some of the meetings, so that comprehensive solution proposals are generated at this meeting.
The support of the United States for this initiative, with the presence of Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and Secretary of Border Security Alejandro Mayorkas, who is traveling to Panama for the first time, is manifested in the agenda of the meeting, which includes the main proposals made by the Panamanians, such as the defense of institutions and governance to discourage emigration and the fight against corruption as a destabilizing element of democracies.
“For more than a year we have been working with the United States and other important American partners to find common ground and areas of articulation to address this phenomenon and avoid an unprecedented humanitarian crisis in the region. This is a matter that we cannot resolve separately. We have the opportunity to establish new effective collaboration mechanisms for specific issues and we are starting with the comprehensive and holistic management of irregular migration. Gathered in Panama, ministers from all over the continent can achieve historic achievements”, declared Foreign Minister Erika Mouynes ahead of the meeting.
The Ministerial Meeting on Migration in Panama is emerging as one of the most important post-pandemic events in the region, due to the high level of the participants and because it consolidates a follow-up dynamic to the meetings that have been taking place after Panama's invitation, both technically and politically.
The work sessions will be distributed during the morning of Wednesday 20 in groups separated by competences and the plenary session will be held in the afternoon of the same day, with a closing that foresees conclusions and recommendations.