EU, ILO and UN Women join forces to realize women migrant workers' rights and opportunities in the ASEAN region

Partnering for safe and fair migration

[Joint Press Release]

The European Union (EU), International Labour Organization (ILO) and UN Women are launching a new joint programme to address women migrant workers' vulnerabilities to violence, trafficking and labour exploitation

Bangkok, Thailand — Today, EU, ILO and UN Women are launching a new programme "Safe and Fair: Realizing women migrant workers' rights and opportunities in the ASEAN region", as part of the EU-UN Spotlight Initiative to eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls.

The programme's main objective is to achieve safe and fair labour migration for all women in the ASEAN region by addressing women migrant workers' vulnerabilities, enhancing their access to essential services and strengthening rights-based and gender-responsive approaches to violence against women and migration governance.

EU Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development, Neven Mimica. Photo: UN Women/Pairach Homtong

The programme was launched at an event co-organized by the EU, ILO and UN Women to introduce the new EU-UN Spotlight Initiative, to eliminate violence against women and girls, and also the Initiative's first programme, "Safe and Fair: Realizing women migrant workers' rights and opportunities in the ASEAN region". Funded by the EU, with a budget of EUR 25 million, the programme will be implemented through a UN Women and ILO partnership. The programme will run for five years, starting 2018, and focus on ASEAN countries.

In his address to government representatives, trade unions and NGOs working on migrant rights and violence against women, students, and UN agencies, EU Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development Neven Mimica said: "Women and girls make up over 70 per cent of all victims of human trafficking. Too often these terrible crimes go unnoticed - unseen and unspoken. And the cycles of violence continue to thrive in silence, in the darkest corners of our society. So it's up to each and every one of us - women and men alike - to stand up and to speak out! To drive out the darkness and to break the walls of silence. This is exactly what our new Spotlight Initiative aims to do."

Women migrant workers in ASEAN

Women migrant workers are significantly contributing to the economies of the countries they work in, and send significant amounts of money home, but the positive experiences and contributions of women migrant workers can only be fully ensured if their labour and human rights are fully protected. Women have fewer options than men for regular migration, and are often employed in lower paid informal sectors, with few if any labour protections. In particular, women migrant workers are over-represented in domestic and care work, an occupation which is often performed in isolation and not covered by many labour laws in the region, making them vulnerable to exploitation, abuse, violence and forced labour.

Efforts to prevent and respond to violence against women in the ASEAN region are growing, and at the same time, much more needs to be done. A specific focus on women migrant workers is needed in this context, as women migrants face vulnerabilities and risks and have limited access to legal protection, justice and support services. Poverty, discrimination based on gender, ethnicity, immigration status and unequal access to education and information are compounding factors contributing to women migrant workers' vulnerabilities to violence, trafficking and labour exploitation.

Whether migrating through regular or irregular channels, women can face the risk of violence from intermediaries and employers, as well as from partners and others. Irregular and domestic workers are particularly vulnerable to exploitation, abuses, violence, forced labour and trafficking due to their status and isolation. Many trafficked women are forced into commercial sexual services while many are also victims of domestic servitude. However, for women migrant workers survivors of violence and human-trafficking, there are many barriers to access essential services such as health care, legal, justice, police and social services, even when they are legally working in the country.

Programme's objectives

With the overall aim of achieving labour migration that is safe and fair for all women in the ASEAN region, the "Safe and Fair" programme will strengthen rights-based and gender-responsive approaches to labour migration governance, address women migrant workers' vulnerabilities to violence and trafficking, and support access to essential services for women migrants who experienced abuse. It will increase the capacity of front-line service providers to respond to the needs of women migrant workers who experienced violence and trafficking. This new programme aims to produce evidence and use data, new technologies and communication to improve the information and access to assistance for migrant women. The programme will also provide skills training opportunities for migrant women and support the establishment of skills recognition frameworks.

The programme will target countries of origin and destination across the ASEAN region, working with women migrant workers, ASEAN Member States' government authorities, ASEAN institutions, and worker, employer, civil society and community-based organizations. This programme fully integrates the principle of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development of "leaving no one behind" by focusing on women migrant workers. It is informed by and will contribute to the 2030 Agenda which emphasizes the importance of gender equality and the empowerment of women of Goal 5, and decent work and economic growth of Goal 8.

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