United Nations Development Programme Jamaica

1st Migration for Development Virtual Fair, 2-3 Nov 2009

Dear Members,

The EC-UN Joint Migration and Development Initiative (JMDI) is seeking submissions from inspirational and innovative civil society-led* migration and development initiatives globally. Successful initiatives will be showcased as part of the Migration and Development Virtual Fair 2009 and a representative from the most compelling initiative will be invited to participate in Athens. The Virtual Fair will be held in parallel with the GFMD Civil Society Days (2-3 November 2009) and will be the first M&D event of its kind – it will bring together 1000s of ‘virtual’ visitors to network, visit virtual exhibitions and post questions online to key participants in Athens.

We are interested in initiatives that have improved the lives of individuals and local communities and can demonstrate significant development benefits through the use of positive linkages with migration. We reward existing achievements. Award-winning schemes must have been consistently successful for at least one year with plans for further expansion. Schemes must also be highly replicable to ensure maximum development impact. Benefits of being selected to be showcased include:

• Participation in the GFMD Civil Society days (for the top selected initiative)
• High profile global publicity
• Enhanced global recognition of projects selected to be showcased in the Virtual Fair
• Opportunities to present your Migration and Development approaches to experts and policy makers internationally
• Access to a global forum for exchanging ideas and solutions with those working in the field of migration and development across the globe.

In order to illustrate the issues being discussed in Athens, the JMDI is seeking initiatives related to the GFMD Roundtable themes. We are therefore particularly interested in initiatives with one or more of the following objectives. Please note however that this list is not exclusive and we welcome all applications:

1. Make Migrant & Development work for the achievement of the MDGs
   
   • Bring tangible benefits to origin countries (e.g. schools, infrastructure)
   • Bring intangible benefits to origin countries (e.g. trade opportunities)
   • Increase family participation in the migration process
   • Target the poorest of the poor
   • Engage diaspora and migrants for development
   • Safeguard the rights of women, children and/or refugees
   • Promote awareness of migration as a positive force to alleviate the impacts of the global financial crisis
   • Provide social protection, access to services or training opportunities
2. Facilitate migrant integration, reintegration and circulation for development
   
   • Empower women migrants in destination countries
   • Support integration of children in destination countries
   • Facilitate direct and indirect recruitment
   • Raise business awareness on the importance of protecting migrants’ rights
   • Support re-integration of returning migrants
   • Facilitate increased skill recognition and skills transferability

To submit an initiative to be showcased in the 2009 Virtual Fair and the opportunity to participate in Athens, please complete the online form: 
http://projects.migration4development.org/user/reset/59/1253809461/4d4fe3cd9c69353baa943eb9aaa345ed, including what makes your project successful and the partnerships involved. After submitting your project details, you will be asked to upload supporting documents/pictures/videos, and we strongly encourage you to strengthen your application in this way. If you have any difficulty completing the online form, please contact us directly at: jmdi.pmu@undp.be.

Please note that this URL is valid only once. If you want to go back to the online form later please use these credentials: 
User name: donatella.pugliese 
Password: 2udFYmnrYq

About the Knowledge Fairs
The JMDI is hosting a series of Knowledge Fairs on Migration and Development as part of an ongoing process to learn from successful civil society-led initiatives and identify ‘good practice’ in the field of migration and development. This ‘knowledge exchange’ is facilitated via an online forum of over 1,000 M&D practitioners sharing their practical experiences in the field. Initiatives selected for the 2009 Virtual Fair will receive recognition from this global community and the innovative approaches identified will become part of the JMDI’s knowledge codification process. The knowledge gathered is intended to inform policy-making within the JMDI partner organizations, the United Nations and the European Commission, and will feed into concrete policy recommendations to be presented to national governments. The 2009 Virtual Fair builds on the first Knowledge Fair in Brussels in 2008, where the initiatives showcased at the used a variety of approaches to harness the positive benefits of migration for the development of origin countries. To learn more about the kind of information and initiatives we are seeking, please explore the details of the 2008 showcased initiatives online at: www.migration4development.org/handbook/en/

Please disseminate this call widely among your networks and invite relevant initiatives to apply. For more information see below or visit: www.migration4development.org

The deadline to apply is now Friday, 16th October 2009. NOTE DEADLINE EXTENDED

We look forward to your submissions.

Best regards,

The JMDI Team
EC-UN Joint Migration and Development Initiative
United Nations Development Programme
UN House, 14 Rue Montoyer, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
Tel: + 32 2 235 0550
Fax: + 32 2 503 47 29
Email: jmdi.pmu@undp.be
www.undp.org/eu
www.migration4development.org

* Civil society organizations (CSOs) include: community organizations, NGOs and foundations, diaspora organizations, migrant associations, academic institutions, professional associations, local and municipal authorities, chambers of commerce, employers organizations and trade unions, media organizations and micro-finance institutions.