Towards Comprehensive Global Guidance on Developing and implementing Bilateral Labour Migration Agreements: Unpacking Key Obstacles to Implementation in the African Region

The joint ILO-IOM project, funded by the Government of Sweden, build on the complementary strengths and experiences of the two organizations to develop regionally relevant analysis, guidance, and capacity building tools on bilateral labour migration agreements in Africa.

Project Objectives and Achievements

The project’s objectives were to enhance the capacity of governments of the African Union and other stakeholders, including social partners, to develop and implement effective bilateral labour migration agreements (BLMAs). The project also contributed to preparing the groundwork for developing comprehensive guidance on BLMAs based on country experiences.

The key outputs of the project are:
  • A Tool for the Assessment of Bilateral Labour Migration Agreements pilot tested in two migration corridors in Africa, which can be further tested and adapted for use in other regions.
  • A preliminary stocktaking study on the development and implementation of bilateral labour migration agreements by African Union Member States, which includes an assessment of 2 labour migration corridors using the above-mentioned tool. 
  • An e-learning training toolkit on Developing and Implementing Bilateral Labour migration agreements in Africa, developed in collaboration with the ITC-ILO.