Mercury, the silent killer

By Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
It is said to be the only metal that presents itself in liquid form at room temperature. Perhaps its deceptive nature adds to it being one of the most dangerous but silent killers of our time.
In its raw state, it is used by small scale miners to extract gold, making it the worst pollutant in the world after the burning of fossil fuels.
It is also extracted from electronic-waste (e-waste) such as computers. E-waste burnt at dump sites in places such as Agbogbloshie, poses health hazards to humans and also contaminates foodstuffs sold at the market.
The Odaw River passes through Agbogbloshie carrying materials from burning sites into gutters and rivers from which water is collected for the numerous vegetable farms situated in the area while the air is also polluted and inhaled by thousands of people who live and work in the area known as Sodom and Gomorra, a densely populated slum.
Mercury is said to be the cause of more than 50 illnesses and diseases, notable among them being Addison's disease, Alzheimer's, asthma, attention deficit, hyperactivity disorder, autoimmune disease, bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, candidiasis, chronic fatigue, colitis, depression, environmental illness, fibromyalgia, gastritis, infertility, insomnia and irritable bowel syndrome.
Others are juvenile arthritis, learning disabilities, lupus erythromatosus, manic depression, multiple chemical sensitivities, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic attacks, Parkinson's disease, pervasive developmental disorder, psychosis, rheumatoid arthritis, schizophrenia, sciatica, sleep disorders and yeast syndrome, among others.
Acute mercury exposure can affect gastrointestinal and respiratory systems. In some cases, mercury poisoning can lead to inflammation of the mouth, loose teeth, ulcerated and bleeding gums. It can also cause certain digestive tract problems such as diarrhoea, inflamed colon and stomach cramps, respiratory problems such as persistent coughing and emphysema and cardiovascular problems such as blood pressure changes, weak pulse and chest pain.

           * People involved in small-scale mining do not protect themselves from chemical pollution
At a national forum in Accra quite recently on the health problems caused by exposure to mercury, the Head of the Public Health Unit of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Dr  Philip K. Amoo, disclosed that many of the kidney recorded deaths among people between the ages of 35 and 45, were due to “heavy metal deposition in the kidney leading to kidney failure.
Mercury, according to health experts, is an extremely reactive toxic element, which can cause a number of hazardous effects on ones health. The severity of health effects of mercury poisoning depends upon the duration and dose of exposure, the chemical form of the mercury, route of exposure and the age and health of the person exposed. It can cause severe damage to the central nervous system.
According to the Ghana Health Service (GHSS), mercury is a known toxic substance that is harmful to especially pregnant women, nursing mothers, infants and young children with the most sensitive group being foetuses.
Foetuses exposed to mercury are prone to decreased birth weight and muscle tone, developmental delay, seizure disorders, deafness, blindness and spasticity.
Poisoning from mercury occurs when a person inhales or ingests or the skin or eye come into contact with mercury. Mercury is widely found in water, soil and air in various forms. Methylmercury is an extremely poisonous form of mercury. It is formed when mercury present in the air gets deposited onto land or into water and is seized upon by certain microorganisms.
Mercury poisoning can also be caused by the consumption of fish that has been contaminated with mercury or through direct exposure to some mercury-containing products. This exposure can affect the immune system and other organs, including the heart, lungs, brain and kidneys. It also travels thousands of miles in the atmosphere, settling in oceans and river beds.
According to the Executive Director of Ecological Restorations, Mr Emmanuel Odjam-Akumatey, the devastation caused by widespread mining is easy to spot, as areas where such activities are undertaken present huge swathes of the forest turned to barren desert, but the damage caused by the heavy use of mercury is more difficult  to detect.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), a person who consumes two servings of mercury contaminated fish per week is getting seven-and-a-half times the safe limit of mercury into his or her body.
In Ghana thousands of people are involved in small scale mining, and according to Kwame Owusu, who 15 years ago was involved in the mining business in Hyediam, a mining community near Sunyani in the Brong Ahafo Region, he is still suffering from skin infections and has developed permanent red eyes as a result of the use of mercury to extract gold.
Similarly, tens of thousands of remote mining sites have sprung up mostly in communities where big mining firms are located, such as Obuasi, Tarkwa and Sunyani and the usage tons of mercury each year has ravaged the nervous system of miners and their families.
The use of mercury in gold mining is illegal in many countries because it is toxic to both human health and the environment but small scale miners continue to use the substance as it is the cheapest, quickest and easiest way of extracting this precious mineral whose price continue to soar on the world market.
In gold mines, as much as one to three grams of mercury are lost for every gram of gold produced. But mercury is a slow and silent killer, so miners scoff at health concerns. They breath mercury fumes and handle the toxic liquid for years with no problems.
Human-generated sources of mercury exposure are a major cause of mercury poisoning. Mercury exposure can occur from breathing contaminated air or due to inadequate use or disposal of mercury-containing products, such as computers, batteries, thermometers or fluorescent light bulbs.
Ghana is identified as a dumping ground for e-waste from developed countries  such as used computers, used mobile phones, old fridges and other electronic gadgets which are imported for a cheaper prize or are given as donations to schools and non-governmental organisations.

                 * Fumes from this burning site at Agbogbloshie in Accra end up in nearby water bodies
The Director of the Education Department of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Mr Emmanuel Salu, identifies that apart from e-waste coming from outside the country, e-waste is also generated locally as most Ghanaians have no idea what to do with their obsolete mobile phones, TV sets, sound systems, refrigerators, air conditioners, computers and CFL lamps and therefore dump them at repair shops and refuse dumps.
With the onset of globalisation, there is a sharp increase in e-waste in Ghana from developed countries which, according to Mr Salu, has neither been matched with policy and regulatory mechanisms nor with infrastructure. He disclosed that only 13 per cent of e-waste is recycled with or without safety procedures.
To him, the country is doing very little to control the situation because of the high demand for the use of such gadgets in the cities and rural areas.
Despite the hazards caused by exposure to mercury, local and international civil societies, including Ecological Restoration, are concerned that the importation and buying of mercury is as easy as doing any other business and that the international trade in mercury is largely unregulated.
 According to them, a total of 55 countries across the world where small-scale gold mining is rife, including Ghana, lack the political will or capacity to prevent the toxic metal from falling into the hands of small scale miners who use the substance indiscriminately.
Although mercury has beneficial uses in areas such as dentistry where it is used for repairing cavities, it is diverted and sold to the gold mines instead, where it can fetch prices 10 times higher its original price.
By the 20th century, mining companies had abandoned mercury in favour of chemicals like cyanide. But small-scale miners like it because according to them,  it is easy to use, fast, cheap and leaves the gold cleaner.
In Ghana the importation of the liquid metal is regulated by the Ministry of Trade and Industry, and according to concerned civil society organisations, this shows the lack of seriousness attached to the importation and use of such a dangerous substance as it is treated as a commodity and not a dangerous substance which needs to be protected from getting into the wrong hands.

                     * Activities of such miners expose them to the dangers of Mercury pollution
Solutions needed
According to Mr Odjam-Akumatey, the question in Ghana now is how to reconfigure public policy, businesses and infrastructure to ensure better returns from development choices in terms of natural, human and financial capital. This necessitates law and markets working together at national, regional and international levels to coherently align economic, environmental and human health goals.
To Mr Salu there is the need for a national collection point for items like used mobile phone batteries, disused CFC bulbs and TV circuit boards which contain mercury.
In his opinion, there is the need for a national policy on e-waste to deal with importation and dumping of old products into the country and the empowerment of national institutions to tackle the problem as a national priority.
According to him a project dubbed the 'E-waste Africa Project' which was developed as part of the Basel Convention aims at enhancing the capacity of African countries in Ghana, Benin, Egypt, Liberia, Nigeria, Tunisia to tackle e-waste imports from the developed world.
Activities under the project include surveys, development of tools for assessing e-waste management, addressing the sound management, testing and certification of second hand products.
To him, the project has a potential to contribute to poverty alleviation by developing market opportunities for trade and export of recovered materials.
The project will also help artisans improve on recycling of electrical and electronic equipment and assist the Ghana EPA to control transboundary movements of e-waste and prevent illegal traffic of such waste.
As part of the way forward, the EPA, he said, in close collaboration with Vodafone is to set up a system to collect used mobile phone batteries at designation centres in Ghana
This will create the needed education to take mobile phone batteries and spoilt phones from the system for recycling .
 Another project undertaken by the agency is to find best practices for people in the waste sector so as to recover useful materials from the e-waste through proper methods and training.
 Also he suggests the need for proper education so that residents, especially in Accra, do not throw e-waste into water bodies as the Korle Lagoon restoration project in Accra has found that most of the waste found in the lagoon are used computer parts

Christmas with flowers

By Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho

With a few days to the celebration of the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, Christians the world over are making last minute shopping as they buy gifts for friends and families.
Currently, traders have pitched their tents along the shoulders of the roads, on the pavements and at any available space in an attempt to cash in on the season, which comes along with much shopping.
Items on display are children’s wear, clothing, shoes, ladies’ bags, jewellery, among other consumables, are on display in the commercial hub of the capital.
However, the first florist and horticulturalist in Ghana, Mrs Margaret Nunoo-Mensah, says there is no Christmas without the usual Christmas flowers.
 Christmas is the main Christian celebration event of the birth of Jesus and its celebration spreads happiness. The day of Christmas is an important day on the religious calendar. Christmas is one of six sacred feast days in the Roman Catholic calendar.
The day comes with visiting friends, arrangement of large amount of festive meals, masquerades in the streets, and the exchange of gifts.
To Mrs Nunoo-Mensah of Premier Florist, any occasion would be incomplete without flowers.
Flowers, she says, are integrally woven with Christmas, especially because the birth of Christ is associated with Christmas flowers.
It is on this occasion that the Director of Premier Florist, Ghana's first florist and horticulture shop, Mrs Margaret Nunoo-Mensah, says after a hectic year, it is ideal for loved ones to show their love with flowers.
Superiors can also show appreciation to their employers by sending them flowers.
Premier Florist, established in 1967, has in stock fresh flowers and artificial flowers depending on one's choice.
With an advanced diploma from KEW Botanical Gardens in London, Mrs Nunoo- Mensah says "our 100 per cent satisfaction guarantee is our personal commitment to creating long-term relationships with our customers".
Working together with her daughter, Amanda, who also holds an advanced diploma in floristry, and worked in a lot of florist shops in the United Kingdom, Mrs Nunoo-Mensah says her outfit works with only the best flowers.
Situated at the Danquah Circle, Premier Florist, she says, is committed to serving the general public who call on them with quality service.
In an interview with the florist at her plush floral shop near the Danquah Circle in Osu, Mrs Nunoo-Mensah said her outfit also gave lectures on floral arrangements to ladies clubs such as the Indian Ladies Association.
She says Premier Florist was the first to hold floral shows in Accra and Kumasi where different types of flowers were put on display to the admiration of all.
After training over 600 young ladies over the years who are now on their own, the Director of Premier Florist says the youth can find employment in floral work.
She, however, cautioned that one needed to have an eye for the best, adding that in her outfit, they chose only the freshest, highest quality flowers to satisfy their customers.
As the festive season inches closer, Mrs Nunoo-Mensah said her shop was ready to take up the pressure, saying that working with flowers was her life and she had therefore dedicated herself to serving people with fresh flowers from her floral farms located in Accra and the Central Region.

Governing Council for pharmacists inaugurated

Story Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
THE Deputy Minister for Health, Mr Robert Joseph Mettle-Nunoo, has inaugurated a nine-member Governing Council for the Ghana College of Pharmacists, with a call for better regulation of the activities of pharmacists in the country.
The inauguration of the council is in fulfilment of the Specialist Health Training and Plant Medicine Research Act, 2011 (Act 833), which aims at promoting specialist training in pharmacy and related disciplines.
The council is chaired by Mr Kwabena Akurang Ohene Manu, an entrepreneur, with Prof Emeritus Kwame Sarpong, the President of Foundation Fellows; Prof. Theophilus C. Fleischer, the Dean of Faculty of Pharmacy of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi; Prof Anna Lartery, a food scientist; Frederica Salla Illiasu of the Attorney-General’s Department, and Mrs Martha Gyansa Lutterodt, the Director of Pharmaceutical Services at the Ministry of Health, as members.
The rest are Mr Joseph Kodjo Nsiah Nyoagbe, the Registrar of the Pharmacy Council; Mr James Ohemeng Kyei of the Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana and Dr. Yaw Adu Gyamfi, an industrialist.
Mr Mettle-Nunoo called on the council to work closely with the Food and Drugs Board (FDB) to stop the importation of fake and imitation drugs into the country.
He called on the members to also ensure that they helped in ensuring that pharmacists were posted to serve in the urban communities across the country.
He advised the council members to work at ensuring that the college produced only the best whose responsibility would be to improve health outcomes.
The deputy minister called on people to be more circumspect about the drugs they bought and where they bought them, saying that buying cheap drugs would mean buying fake or imitated drugs.
The Executive Secretary of the National Council for Tertiary Education, Prof. Mahama Duwiejua, who chaired the inauguration ceremony, said the College of Pharmacists would help promote specialist training in pharmacy and related disciplines, as well as promote continuous professional development in pharmacy and contribute to the formulation of policies on sound health, medicine and public health in general.
He gave an assurance that the council would ensure the responsible use of medicines to assure the sustainability of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
He called for support for the council from members and the public, saying that the council could achieve a lot with the needed support.

NDP slams Election 2012

Story Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
THE National Democratic Party (NDP) has described the just-ended general election as the infamous “419 Election 2012”, saying there were numerous anomalies that characterised the exercise.
“We believe that the Electoral Commission (EC), on hindsight, will be humble enough to accept its problems of mismanagement and go ahead to carry out major reforms,” it said.
At a press conference to state its impressions on the elections, the Chairman of the NDP, Dr Nii Armah Josiah Aryeh, said although the party was not contemplating going to court to contest the results, it was of the belief that the outcome of the elections still hanged in the balance.
He said although it was painful to describe the elections as “daylight robbery and not democracy”, the outcome of the party’s own internal auditing of the results showed an unhealthy pattern in the collation of the figures in several constituencies across the country.
“This year’s elections had serious avoidable flaws, including the problem with the verification machines, the voting process itself, the delays and problems of collation of results in many constituencies across the country,” he added.
According to him, it was the belief of the NDP that in order for the nation to continue on the path of real peace, unity and stability, reports of malpractice must be investigated and the results used to strengthen the democratic dispensation.
Dr Aryeh, who was flanked by the Leader of the NDP, Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, and other executives of the party, said, “We support the review of all disputed election results and wish to remind the EC that it is the people of Ghana who cast their vote and their will should prevail.”
Citing instances when NDP parliamentary candidates were ‘short-changed’ during the collation of results, Dr Aryeh said some NDP candidates in the Volta, Western, Eastern and Ashanti regions were given lower figures than they obtained.
He pointed out that the country’s democracy was gradually becoming one for monetary influence and the massive swindling of the conscience of the masses.
He said because of that trend in the country’s democracy, “some governments are impoverishing the people so that during elections the people are given some pittance for their votes”, adding that that had a negative influence on the direction of the country’s democratic growth.
Soon, he said, people would not vote based on the sanctity of the right of choice, conviction, the capacity of the person seeking their mandate or the ability of the individual to perform effectively to uplift them from poverty and undevelopment.
He commended the many gallant candidates of the NDP who, in the midst of influences from other political parties, still held on to their sense of morality.
Dr Aryeh called on the security agencies to work to uphold the core values of their calling, saying, “The nation’s peace and stability depends on their sense of neutrality and we know they have the men and women who can do just that.”

PPP restrategise for election 2016

Story: Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
THE Progressive People’s Party (PPP) has organised a meeting between its parliamentary candidate and the executive of the party to chat the way forward after the 2012 general elections.
The meeting was aimed at having an introspection of how the party performed in the just-ended elections and to find better ways of presenting itself to the populace in future elections.
The National Chairman of the Party, Nii Allotey Brew-Hammond, said the meeting also offered the aspirants the opportunity to interact with the PPP’s Presidential Candidate, Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, and also to encourage them to strive for greater heights in their future political persuit.
He said the just-ended elections gave the PPP a chance to present its ideals and agenda for change to the general populace and was therefore hopeful that people would accept it in the nearest future for an effective change in the country.
“To all Ghanaians who want an alternate to the NDC and NPP, PPP offers leadership that is credible and appeals for your support”, he said.
He, therefore, called on the parliamentary candidates to keep alive the goal of putting self-reliant members into parliament in future and also provide the party an opportunity to train future leaders in the acquisition of leadership skills.
He said “as a demonstration of our determination to participate fully in the debate of ideas, we have suggested reforms intended to strengthen our electoral processes to the Electoral Commission for their consideration”.
Among the recommendations made to the EC were to put steps in place for the verification, documentation and auditing of campaign funding.
Regarding voting, it suggested that the Commission move to a fully electronic voting system among others.
The National Women’s Co-ordinator of the PPP, Ms Berlinda Bulley, called for a collective effort from all members and supporters of the party to help move it forward.
A member of the PPP’s Advisory Council, Mr Ladi Nylander, called on Ghanaians to watch the current trend of the country’s political history saying that “absolute power corrupts absolutely”, and that there was the need to discard the notion of winner takes all from the country’s politics.
 None of the 211 PPP parliamentary candidates won any of the seats they contested for.
Adducing reasons, some of the candidates blamed their defeat on other parties using monetary influence to persuade the electorates.
According to one candidate, in one of her campaign rounds she was invited to talk to a church congregation  and after parting with some monies as offertory, she was asked to “do something” for the head pastor so that he would pray for her.
Another candidate said the electorates would first demand what you have for them before they would talk to you.
According to them, the situation had become so because the electorates over the years had been influenced with cash and other gifts so although they would be polite to listen to you, they also want candidates to give them gifts including cash before they vote for them.
One candidate said he was given all the assurances that he needed to hear but on the day of voting, he was disappointed about the outcome.
Candidates spoken to however, said they would not give up as this was the party’s first attempt but they would continue to forge on till the electorates buys into their ideas.

Women groups lobby president-For appointment of more women in next gov’t

Story: Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
GENDER activists have petitioned President John Dramani Mahama to ensure that he fulfills the promise of ensuring that 40 per cent of women are appointed in the new government and in other public institutions.
They have also stressed the need for the NDC government to fulfill its Better Ghana Manifesto of having 40 per cent of women in public office by proposing names of women and supporting the President’s efforts.
In a petition to President Mahama and other members of the executive, the gender activists urged the Appointments Committee of Parliament to reject the Executive’s list of nominations for Ministerial, Deputy Ministerial and other public appointments if the list did not contain at least 40 per cent females.
The petition was put together by the Women in Law and Development in Africa (WiLDAF Ghana) and Partners of the “We Know Politics” Project, which include the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), The Hunger Project -Ghana and the Gender Studies and the Human Rights Documentation Centre.
The group also urged the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs and the Attorney’s General’s Office to expedite the process of drafting an Affirmative Action bill, stressing that “The NDC-led Parliament must pass the Affirmation Law as soon as possible”.
According to the group, the petition was informed by the commitment the NDC and government attached to affirmative action as stated in the 2012 Better Ghana Manifesto, page 26 to attain 40 per cent women’s representation in all public appointments.
It said it had taken note of the improved performance of women in the 2012 Elections where 30 women won, 14 of whom are from the NDC, and was also encouraged by Cabinet’s endorsement of an Affirmative Action Law for 40 per cent women’s representation in public office, as proposed by the Constitution Review Commission.
The group said it had also taken note of the victory speech by the President-elect, John Dramani Mahama, stating that he would consider ethnic, regional and gender balance in the appointment of officials in the government.
It noted that current political appointments did not reflect the commitment Ghana had made at both the national and international levels and would shamefully miss  target three of the Millenium Development Goals of a minimum threshold of 30 per cent representation of women by 2015.
Attached to the petition was the list of 65 potential women who could be considered for appointments in the next government, and they include the names of all the 14 NDC elected MPs; all the current female ministers and deputy ministers as well as outgoing ones in the present government, some active presiding and assemblywomen from various metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies across the country; some regional women organiser’s in the NDC and some gender experts and activists.
Others are NDC female parliamentary aspirants in the just ended elections, former female ministers in the NDC; some female chief executive officers; some female human right activists, former female Council of State Members, a female vice chancellor as well as some female heads of institutions.

International Migration Day: Migrants count

By Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho

Today December 18, marks International Migration Day (IMD). Instituted by the United Nations' (UN), it is to recognise the efforts, contributions and rights of migrants worldwide.
A report by  the Global Commission on International Migration (2005), estimated that the number of international migrants increased from 75 million to about 200 million in the past 30 years and migrants could be found in every part of the world. The report also found that the migration could accelerate due to the growing developmental, demographic and democratic disparities that existed between different world regions. Moreover, migration is driven by powerful economic, social and political forces that governments need to acknowledge as a reality.
On December 4, 2000, the UN General Assembly, taking into account the large and increasing number of migrants in the world, proclaimed December 18 as IMD. A decade earlier on that day, the assembly adopted the international convention on the protection of the rights of all migrant workers and members of their families. Earlier celebrations of the day can be traced as far back as 1997 when some Asian migrant organisations marked December 18 as the day to recognise the rights, protection, and respect for migrants.
Each year, the UN invites governments, organisations and individuals to observe IMD by distributing information on the human rights and migrant’s fundamental freedoms. People are also invited to share their experiences and contribute to designing action plans to ensure their protection. Organisations actively involved in promoting the day include, Amnesty International, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and the National Network for Immigrants and Refugee Rights.
For many people across the world, going away from their home town or region can be the best option or even the only to develop their standard of living. Migration can be an immensely contributing factor in improving the income, education and future prospects of children.But its value is somewhat even more: being able to opt where to stay as a key component of human freedom. Nurses, social workers, writers, political refugees, carpenters, construction workers, academics and computer professionals are all part of the around 1 billion people on their heels both within their native countries and abroad.
When people move out of their native country they embark on a journey of uncertainty, hope within or across the international fences. Most people migrate in the look out of better prospects, hoping to add to their own potential with infrastructures and resources in the destination nation. Local societies or regional organisations as a whole are also the beneficiaries both in native places and at destinations nations.
The multicultural background of these individuals and the policies that regulate their movement make human mobility one of the most perplexed issues that the world is facing today. IMD is celebrated with an objective to incorporate the key interest of migrants and their communities on the agenda, and highlight the threats they encounter and enjoy their achievements. The Day is envisioned initially as an opportunity to identify the contributions made by myriads of migrants to the flowing economies of their home and host nations, and to develop respect for their fundamental human rights.
Celebrating the day provides an opportunity to identify the contributions made by thousands of migrants to the progress and prosperity of number of nations around the world; to curb all kinds of violence and abuse faced by the migrants and their family members and advocate respect for their primary human rights; to request governments around the world to refine the UN Convention on Migrant Workers; to make the governments responsible for the fundamental rights of migrants.
According to the IOM, which is the world's largest agency dealing with migration, the evacuation of more than 200,000 migrant workers from Libya in 2011 focused world attention on the plight of tens of thousands of migrant workers, mainly from low-income, developing countries, who found themselves swept up by the political upheaval, without money, jobs, documentation or any means of getting home to their families.
The IOM observed that the marginal status in Libya and obvious vulnerability touched a chord with international donors who stepped in to help agencies including IOM and UNHCR to mount a massive repatriation operation. They included the World Bank, which funded a $10 million IOM airlift of 35,000 migrants to Bangladesh.
The crisis according to the IOM highlighted the fact that conflicts and man-made or natural disasters could impact already vulnerable migrants resulting in humanitarian crises. 
The evacuation of migrants from Libya was a remarkable humanitarian achievement but it was a job half done. While we recognised the reintegration needs of returning Bangladeshi and worked with the government and the World Bank to meet them, we failed to recognise the needs and well-being of other migrants who returned empty-handed to economically depressed and food insecure countries such as Chad and Niger, says IOM Director General, Mr  William Lacy Swing. 
“Crises can result in complex and often unpredictable short and long term population flows. These bring with them a raft of challenges that the international community needs to address comprehensively. They include the protection of vulnerable migrants from crisis-related violence and exploitation in their host country, and in transit, and their safe and sustainable reintegration once they get home,” he notes. 
The IOM’s Migration Crisis Operational Framework, which was officially endorsed by the Organisation’s governing Council on November 27, aims to institutionalise IOM’s capacity to respond to migration crises and to address some of the gaps that currently exist with regard to migration in international humanitarian systems.
It seeks to help states to fulfill their responsibility to assist and protect mobile populations, because migrants are more likely to be subject to hardship, human rights violations and discrimination in crisis situations. “Finding humane and effective solutions to the complex and multi-faceted challenges of crisis-related migration flows requires strong partnerships between international organisations, states and a variety of non-state actors, including NGOs, the media, the private sector, religious groups and transnational diaspora communities,” says Mr Swing.  “We all share a responsibility to protect the human rights of all people on the move,”  he added.
As the world celebrates IMD today, the IOM calls on the international community, and in particular migrant sending and receiving countries, to recognise the implications of crises for migrants and their families left behind and act to mitigate both the short and long term consequences.