alt
Original Language
English
Number of Pages
68
Reference Number
ENG0732
Date of upload

26 Apr 2019

Guidelines for the Harmonization of Migration Data Management in the ECOWAS Region

The Guidelines for the harmonization of migration data in the West Africa region is intended for different range of users of migration data, such as migration researchers, policymakers, as well as national and regional experts working on migration-related mandates. The Guidelines is established within existing regional and global legal frameworks (such as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) protocols, African Union conventions and the Sustainable Development Goals) and suggests creative ways of asking questions that will help to identify which types of data are needed and possible data sources for key population groups of interest to ECOWAS, including how to collect and analyse them. It builds on information captured during different ECOWAS and member States fora in order to propose means of exploiting migration data, while ensuring that they lead to evidence-based policies. It also highlights definitions of migration terms and concepts, as well as practical ways of disseminating and sharing migration data at the national and regional levels, including the use of migration profiles, migration data briefings, as well as other online channels. Finally, it presents a two-year action plan for the collection and analysis of migration data for ECOWAS and its member States.

The document is produced within the jointly funded European Union–ECOWAS project, Support to Free Movement of Persons and Migration in West Africa (FMM West Africa).

 

  • 1. THE AIM OF THE GUIDELINES
  • 2. RATIONALE AND POLICY FRAMEWORK
    • 2.1 The role of ECOWAS
    • 2.2 The policy need for a reliable evidence database
    • 2.3 Overview of selected documents
    • 2.4 Strategic approach to create a sustainable regional migration information system
  • 3. IMPROVING THE EVIDENCE BASE ON MIGRATION FOR POLICY: CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
    • 3.1 Current state of the art
    • 3.2 UN concepts and definitions
    • 3.3 Key findings of the 2014 data assessment and the national reports to the regional working party (TOGO)
    • 3.4 The importance of international recommendations and a pragmatic approach to national practices
  • 4. IMPROVING THE EVIDENCE BASE ON MIGRATION FOR POLICY: A PRACTICAL MANUAL FOR DATA COLLECTION
    • 4.1 Main national data sources
    • 4.2 Key population groups
      • 4.2.1 Migrant workers
      • 4.2.2 Internally displaced persons
      • 4.2.3 Asylum seekers/refugees
      • 4.2.4 Minors
      • 4.2.5 ECOWAS citizens
      • 4.2.6 Women
      • 4.2.7 Students
      • 4.2.8 Trafficked persons
  • 5. DISSEMINATION OF MIGRATION STATISTICS
    • 5.1 Providing analysis and reporting to policymakers
    • 5.2 Migration profiles as tools for policymakers
    • 5.3 Policy data briefs
    • 5.4 Online dissemination practices (illustrative not exhaustive)
  • 6. SHARING DATA AND PRODUCING STATISTICS AT A REGIONAL LEVEL
    • 6.1 Action plan overview
    • 6.2 ECOWAS action plan for the collection and analysis of statistics in the field of migration (2017–2019)
  • 7. SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS
  • 8. REFERENCES
  • 9. ANNEX I – SAMPLE TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR A TECHNICAL WORKING GROUP IN SUPPORT OF A MIGRATION PROFILE
  • 10. ANNEX II – PROPOSED TABLES FOR INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION
  • 11. ANNEX III – GLOSSARY