Fifty-second Lecture - William Lacy Swing

Fifty-second Lecture - April 19, 2013

“Making Migration a Positive Factor for Development in the Americas”

Speaker: William Lacy Swing, Director-General, International Organization for Migrations (IOM)

It is an honor to participate in this distinguished OAS Lecture Series. Thank you, Mr. Secretary-General, for giving me this unique opportunity to exchange with you all on how, together, we can make migration a positive force for development in the Americas. I am particularly grateful for this opportunity given:  

(a) IOM’s close cooperation with the OAS;
(b) the importance of migration in the Americas, and;
(c) the timing – just two days before this week’s UN General Assembly’s High Level Dialogue on Migration and Development.

 I would like to make three points. First, I would like to set the scene by giving an overview of recent global trends in migration; then review migration trends in the Americas. Third and final, I would wish to explore with you a few crucial goals for the High Level Dialogue, along with examples of practical steps, to transform migrant challenges into advantages, and thereby make migration a positive force for development in the Americas and the world.

Full Speech in English