ľ¹ÏÓ°Ôº, in collaboration with the International Labour Organization (ILO) Asia and the Pacific and International Organization for Migration (IOM), is organizing a Migration Core Course and Conference in Bangkok, Thailand, on June 10-12, 2024.
The goal of this Migration Core Course and Conference is to create a knowledge exchange and learning activitiy for policymakers and academics within the East Asia and Pacific region. In addition to policy-relevant academic knowledge, the conference will present real-world examples and policy challenges, including World Bank operational projects and ouputs. The activities would help policymakers to identify practical constraints and ways to reforming migration policies to reach effective outcomes.
The conference will bring together experts and practitioners, including from the World Bank and development partners, to share global knowledge on costs and benefits of international labor mobility, evolution of migration policies, good practices in facilitating labor migration while reducing costs of migration, and challenges in managing/facilitating labor migration, especially in East Asia and Pacific countries.
Watch the livestream of the Conference Opening Session (June 11, 9 am-12 pm) on .
- OVERVIEW
- AGENDA (CORE COURSE)
- AGENDA (CONFERENCE)
- RELATED
East Asia and Pacific (EAP) region is at the crossroads of global mobility trends. Rapidly declining birth rates and increasing life expectancies are reshaping the demographic profiles of not just the high-income but also the middle-income countries. Japan is experiencing substantial decline in its labor force while many middle-income countries ¨C such as China and Thailand ¨C now have elderly population shares that are historically observed in high-income countries. While lower-income countries continue to have fertility rates above replacement, this is likely to be shorter-term phenomena and they will experience demographic transition earlier than anticipated. Aging higher-income societies not only lead to shrinking labor forces, but they also create demand for ¡°care services¡± such as in healthcare.
Coupled with these demographic shifts, continuing income and productivity gaps, and potential impacts of climate change create stronger forces for labor mobility within the region as well as from the region to the rest of the world. Wages in Singapore are, on average, five times higher than in other Association of Southeast Asian (ASEAN) countries. A lower-skilled Cambodian worker can easily triple his real income by working in Thailand or increase it by eight times in Korea. The remittances these workers send back home improve education, healthcare, and entrepreneurship, leading to reduced poverty and stronger development.
Not surprisingly, intra-regional migration in EAP is high. But the most relevant question is not about the number of migrants, but the conditions under which people migrate. For mobility to lead to win-win-win outcomes for the origin and destination economies as well as the migrants, it needs to take place under regular, orderly, and safe conditions. The policy frameworks that govern migration ¨C whether national, bilateral, or regional ¨C should address the needs of the labor markets in both origin and destination countries. Migration should not drain the already scarce human capital and skills in poorer societies. Migration should not lead to increased informality in the destination labor markets, and dislocation and unemployment of their citizens. Migrants should not be exploited, among other issues, by their employers via lower wages and poor working conditions, or by intermediaries who charge exorbitant fees. Their skills and credentials should be formally recognized so they can be employed in occupations commensurate to their human capital. Remittance costs should be lower than what they currently are.
The world, especially EAP region, is at a demographic, economic, and social inflection point. Mobility can be a powerful tool to address many of the challenges that low- and high-income countries jointly face. Efficient and effective policy tools are being designed, implemented, and evaluated in origin, transit, and destination countries continuously. The main emerging lessons are clear and they require policymakers to be innovative and to coordinate their activities within and across their national borders.
Monday, June 10, 2024: Migration Core Course
Time |
Session |
8:00 am |
Registration |
9:00 am |
Opening remarks Speaker: Loli Arribas Banos, Manager for Social Protection and Jobs Global Unit, World Bank |
9:10 am |
Session 1: Determinants of migration patterns ¨C demography, climate change, conflict, and violence ¡¤ Existing and emerging global trends and how they shape pull-push forces Speaker: Caglar Ozden, Co-Director of WDR 2023, World Bank |
10:40 am |
Coffee break |
10:55 am |
Session 2: Evolution of migration trends ¡¤ Global migration patterns and how they are responding to economic, social, political, and environmental factors Speakers: Caglar Ozden, Co-Director of WDR 2023, World Bank Maheshwor Shreshta, Senior Economist, World Bank |
12:25 pm |
Lunch |
1:30 pm |
Session 3: Labor market impacts of migration and critical policy responses ¡¤ Effects on destination countries and key trends; and data and empirical challenges Speakers: Caglar Ozden, Co-Director of WDR 2023, World Bank Soonhwa Yi, Task Team Leader of the EAP flagship report, World Bank Walter Theseira, Associate Professor of Economics, Singapore University of Social Sciences, Singapore |
2:45 pm |
Coffee break |
3:00 pm |
Session 4: Emigration as part of an integrated development framework ¡¤ Policies and challenges in origin countries, e.g., education, high-skilled emigration, remittances, diaspora engagement, and reintegration of returnees ¡¤ Policies in destination countries with a focus on Singapore Speakers: Caglar Ozden, Co-Director of WDR 2023, World Bank Maheshwor Shreshta, Senior Economist, World Bank Alvin Ang, Department of Economics Chair, Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines |
4:15 pm |
Coffee break |
4:30 pm |
Session 5: Regional and multilateral coordination and cooperation in designing migration policies [] ¡¤ Successful examples of bilateral and regional agreements, Global Skills Partnerships, and issues related to transit migration Speakers: Pablo Acosta, Global Lead for Migration, World Bank Jeremy Lebow, Economist, World Bank |
5:45 pm |
Wrap-up / feedback Speaker: Loli Arribas Banos, Manager for Social Protection and Jobs Global Unit, World Bank |
Tuesday, June 11, 2024: Migration Conference
Time |
Session |
8:00 am |
Registration and networking |
9:00 am |
Opening remarks Speakers: - Fabrizio Zarcone, Country Manager for Thailand, World Bank - Panudda Boonpala, Deputy Regional Director, ILO Asia and the Pacific - Sarah Lou Arriola, Regional Director, IOM Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific |
9:30 am |
Keynote address Speaker: H.E. Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, Minister of Labor, Thailand |
9:45 am |
Presentation of the World Development Report (WDR) 2023: ¡°Migrants, Refugees, and Societies¡± Speaker: Caglar Ozden, Co-Director of WDR 2023, World Bank |
10:00 am |
Coffee break and photos |
10:30 am |
Session 1: Migration is a fact of life in the East Asia and Pacific (EAP) region Chair: Loli Arribas Banos, Manager for Social Protection and Jobs (SPJ) Global Unit, World Bank Patterns and trends of migration in the region Speaker: Yasser El-Gammal, Practice Manager, SPJ, World Bank Key messages from the World Bank¡¯s EAP regional flagship report on migration: ¡°Building Futures: Migrants¡¯ role in economic growth and development¡± Speaker: Soonhwa Yi, Task Team Leader of EAP migration report, Senior Economist, SPJ, World Bank Key messages from UN Asia Global Compact on Migration (GCM) Report 2025 Speaker: Sabine Henning, Task Team Leader of the UN Asia GCM report 2025, Chief, Social Development Division, UN ESCAP Discussants: - Edgardo S. Aranjuez II, Assistant Director, National Economic and Development Authority, Philippines - MOE, Malaysia |
12:00 pm |
Lunch |
1:30 pm |
Session 2: Labor market trends and migration policies in EAP Chair: Nilim Baruah, Senior Regional Labour Migration Specialist, International Labour Organization (ILO) Cross-country comparisons of migration policies Speaker: Matthew Dornan, Senior Economist for Malaysia, SPJ, World Bank CASE: Japan¡¯s labor migration policies and JICA¡¯s support to enhance net gains from migration Speaker: Yosuke Kobayashi, Deputy Director General for Citizen Partnership Promotion and Senior Director, Office for Foreign Human Resources, Domestic Strategy and Partnership Department, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Japan CASE: China¡¯s policies to address challenges from population aging and labor shortages Speaker: Julia Zheng, Vice President, Director of Research Department, Center for China and Globalization, China CASE: Understanding Emigration Intentions among High-Skilled Youth in Myanmar Speaker: Yashodhan Ghorpade, Senior Economist for Myanmar, SPJ, World Bank Discussants: - Walter Theseira, Associate Professor of Economics, Singapore University of Social Sciences, Singapore - Representative from Cambodia - Sirada Khemanitthathai, Lecturer, School of International Affairs, Faculty of Political Science and Public Administration, Chiang Mai University, Thailand |
3:15 pm |
Coffee break |
3:30 pm |
Session 3: Challenges for managing migration Chair: Geertrui Lanneau, Senior Regional Specialist on Labour Mobility and Social Inclusion for the IOM Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific Enhancing regular pathways for labor migration Speaker: Anna Engblom, Chief Technical Advisor, ILO CASE: Korea¡¯s 4th immigration basic plan Speaker: Insoo Seo, Immigration Liaison Officer, Korean Immigration Service, Ministry of Justice, Korea CASE: The Philippines¡¯ return and reintegration programs and challenges Speaker: Delma Cruz, Labor Attache and OIC-Director, National Reintegration Center for OFWs, Department of Migrant Workers, the Philippines CASE: Vanuatu- Managing temporary labor migration and successful reintegration Speaker: Murielle Meltenoven, Co-Chair of Labour, Vanuatu Discussants: - Mr. Bounsouan Xaiyasinh, Director of Overseas Employment Division, Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, Lao PDR - Representative from Thailand Immigration |
5:00 pm |
Wrap-up of Conference DAY 1 Speaker: Dr. Aphisit Techanitisawad, Chairman of Central Region, The Federation of Thai Industries, Thailand |
5:30 pm |
Conference reception Closing remarks Speaker: Loli Arribas-Banos, Manager for Social Protection and Jobs Global Unit, World Bank |
Wednesday, June 12, 2024: Migration Conference
Time |
Session |
8:00 am |
Registration and networking |
|
Keynote address Emerging headwinds in East Asia and Pacific Speaker: Aaditya Mattoo, Chief Economist for East Asia and Pacific, World Bank |
9:00 am |
Session 4: Innovative migration system for mutually beneficial outcomes ¨C concepts and examples Chair: Yasser El-Gammal, Practice Manager for SPJ, World Bank Emerging trends in bilateral labor agreements (BLAs) Speaker: Angelica Neville, ILO expert on BLAs CASE: Global Skills Partnerships Speaker: Pablo Acosta, Global Lead for Migration, World Bank CASE: Malaysia ¨C Innovations in managing migration from the firms¡¯ perspective Speaker: Linda Lumayag, Malaysia Employer Federation Migration, business and human rights project Speaker: Maximillian Pottler, Head of Labour Mobility and Social Inclusion, IOM Thailand Discussants: - Mr. Harianto Tiku, Ministry of Manpower, Indonesia - Representative from Department of Skills development, MOL, Thailand |
10:15 am |
Coffee break |
10:30 am |
Session 5: Innovative solutions to challenges faced in migration journeys Chair: Tanida Arayavechkit, Senior Economist, World Bank Innovations in managing migration in the Philippines Speaker: Alvin Ang, Department of Economics Chair, Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines Remittances and elderly population in Vietnam Speaker: Yang Huang, Senior Economist for China/Mongolia for SPJ, World Bank JICA¡¯s support to enhance net gains from migration in origin countries Speaker: Yosuke Kobayashi, Deputy Director General for Citizen Partnership Promotion and Senior Director, Office for Foreign Human Resources, Domestic Strategy and Partnership Department, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Japan International migration in Thailand Speaker: Sakkarin Niyomsilpa, Assistant Professor, Institute for Population and Social Research, Mahidol University, Thailand Discussants: - Ms. Sunan Petchoo, Inspector-General, Department of Labour Protection and Welfare, Thailand - Mr. Johnson Oge, Chief Immigration Officer, Ministry of Commerce, Industry, Labour and Immigration, Solomon Islands |
12:00 pm |
Lunch [Lighting Talk] |
1:30 pm |
Session 6: Migration policy package Facilitator: Caglar Ozden, Co-Director of WDR 2023, World Bank Migration as a central part of policies to deal with population aging ¨C presenting findings from policy scenarios using a new macroeconomic modeling work Speaker: Douglas Laxton, Director, Saddle Point Research and The Better Policy Project Discussants: - Representative from the Bank of Thailand - Mahesh Shrestha, Senior Economist for Nigeria, SPJ, World Bank |
2:30 pm |
Coffee break |
2:45 pm |
Session 7: Showcasing of the World Bank projects across the world Chair: Robert Palacios, Lead Economist, SPJ EAP, World Bank Key projects, challenges, and solutions, including equitable access to migration opportunities, skills development, return and reintegration, and recognition of credentials Speakers: - S. Amer Ahmed, Program Leader for Human Development, South Asia Region, World Bank - Mahesh Shrestha, Senior Economist for Nigeria, SPJ, World Bank - Ruth Rodriguez, Senior Economist for the Philippines, SPJ, World Bank - Jacob Cop, Project Manager, WB Enhancing Labor Mobility project, Labour Mobility Unit, Department of Treasury, Papua New Guinea Discussants: - Representative from Department of Employment, MOL, Thailand |
5:00 pm |
Closing of the Conference Speaker: Fabrizio Zarcone, Country Manager for Thailand, World Bank |
Date: June 10 - 12, 2024 ET
Location: Bangkok, Thailand