India recently became the chairman of the Colombo Process Group for the first time

India has become chair of the regional grouping Colombo Process for the first time since its inception in 2003.India would lead the grouping for the period 2024-26.

Colombo Process

• The Colombo Process comprises 12 Asian member states and serves as a regional consultative forum. It aims to promote the sharing of best practices related to overseas employment for countries in South and Southeast Asia that send migrant workers abroad.
• The 12 member states include Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam.
• The founding states include Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam.
• In the past, it has been chaired by Afghanistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Bangladesh.
• The decisions under Colombo Process are made by consensus and are non-binding.

Objectives

• Share experiences, lessons learned and best practices.
• Consult on issues faced by overseas workers, and offer practical solutions.
• Optimise development benefits from organised overseas employment.
• Review and monitor the implementation of the ministerial recommendations.

Secretariat: The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) provides technical and administrative support to the Colombo Process.The Colombo Process Technical Support Unit (CPTSU), based in Sri Lanka, provides technical support to the Colombo Process in its thematic areas of focus.

Five Thematic Priority Areas

1. Skills and Qualification Recognition Processes
2. Fostering Ethical Recruitment Practices
3. Pre-departure Orientation and Empowerment
4. Promote Cheaper, Faster and Safer Transfer of Remittances
5. Labor Market Analysis

Achievements

• A regional workshop for employment agencies in Asia on placing workers in Europe and ethical recruitment was held in Manila (2006).
• A feasibility study to establish an Overseas Workers Resource Centre (OWRC) in one of the contractual labour destination countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has been completed.
• Organised the first “Asia-EU Consultation on Labour Migration” held in Brussels in 2008 attended by Colombo Process countries and 16 EU member states.

International Organisation for Migration (IOM) It is part of the United Nations System as the leading inter-governmental organisation promoting since 1951 humane and orderly migration for the benefit of all, with 175 member states and