Cairo, 4 May 2020 – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted the signing ceremony of an amendment to the agreement between the Egyptian government and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) that was concluded on May 21, 1995 related to the legal status, benefits and immunities of the Organization in Egypt and considering the presence of two IOM offices in the country, one of which is a country office and a regional one concerned with coverage the Middle East and North Africa region.

Egypt became IOM Member State in 1990 and in 1991 IOM opened its Country Office for Egypt in Cairo. 

After an initial expansion of the country mission outreach to cover regional functions today the IOM Regional Office for the Middle East and North Africa provides policy, technical and administrative support to 13 IOM offices and extends its services to all 17 countries it covers.

The signing reaffirms the shared commitment between Egypt and IOM to enhance effective cooperation between the two sides, as IOM provides assistance to migrants in Egypt, as well as implementing and financing many capacity-building programs to combat migrant smuggling and human trafficking. The recent period also witnessed close cooperation between the Egyptian government and IOM to reduce the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on migrants, refugees and those in similar situations in Egypt.

Antonio Vitorino, the Director-General of the International Organization for Migration, had visited Egypt in January 2020 to participate in the second International Forum on Migration Statistics (IFMS). On the sidelines of his participation in this important international event, the Director-General met with Dr. Mostafa Madbouly, the Egyptian Prime Minister, to provide thanks for the continued support provided by Egypt to the United Nations Migration Agency, expressing his gratitude for the cooperation between IOM Egypt and the government of Egypt on various issues that fall within IOM’s mandate. Moreover, the Director-general complimented the efforts made by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to implement the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, stressing that IOM will continue to support Egypt in this framework.

For more information, please contact Wigdan Mohamad at IOM Egypt, Tel: +20 1012 428 527, Email: wimohamad@iom.int