IOM Mexico strengthens skills for counseling and labour inclusion of migrants
The Western Hemisphere Program team in Mexico began 2021 by strengthening the skills of key actors in the integration of migrants into Mexican society. To this end, strategic training activities were implemented with government counterparts and staff of the Information Hubs on Migration.
Training Mexican employers on hiring foreign workers
On January 20, the first edition of the Virtual Training Course for Employers on Corporate Social Responsibility and the Recruitment of International Persons was launched, organized by the IOM in collaboration with COMCE (Consejo Empresarial Mexicano de Comercio Exterior, Inversión y Tecnología, A.C.). Twenty-seven companies from all over Mexico participated in the course, which will be strengthening their capacities in the areas of corporate social responsibility, labour migration and development, as well as labour inclusion of migrants, including the gender perspective.
The course, which will be taught virtually on the IOM's E-Campus platform, is aimed at human resources teams and managers in the Mexican business sector. International experts from other agencies such as the International Labour Organization are also expected to participate. This was the first edition of the course, and it concluded on February 10. IOM expects to replicate the exercise throughout the year.
"The course will provide the necessary tools for Mexican companies to incorporate good practices when including migrants in their workforce and will eliminate taboos about hiring non-nationals," said Fernanda Moraflores Magallón, COMCE's coordinator for Central America and the Caribbean.
Strengthening field work
From January 18 to 20, the IOM team visited the information hubs located in Chiapas and Tabasco, particularly in the municipalities of Balancán and Palenque. The main objective of the visit was to train the teams of the counters on the use of the new software of the Model of Progressive Autonomy (MAP). This new tool will facilitate the registration, compilation and analysis of information on the different migratory profiles that come to the hubs in search of migratory orientation.
The information hubs are centers for direct, clear and reliable information and advice on migration, operated by municipalities, institutions or local organizations with the support of the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The Information Hub on Migration at Palenque has been operating since December 2016 and during the last quarter alone assisted more than 200 people. The one in Balancán was opened in March 2020, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The visit was also used to identify training and logistical needs.
Both the course and the support to the Information Hubs are part of the IOM Western Hemisphere Program, funded by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration.