Continuous Reporting System on International Migration in the Americas (SICREMI).
Since its inception in 2009, the objective of the SICREMI project has been to compile, analyze and publish statistics on international migration in the Western Hemisphere, and also from the countries of the Americas to OECD countries. The publication shows recent changes in migratory movements and policies in the Americas.
During 2017, the Department of Social Inclusion of the OAS and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), presented in the framework of the celebration of “International Migrants Day” on December 18th, 2017 the “Fourth Report of the Continuous Reporting System on International Migration in the Americas (SICREMI 2017).”
The study highlighted that in recent years, the deceleration of economic growth in Latin America and the global recovery in advanced countries have led to an increase in outflows from LAC, in particular to Spain and to the United States. In the Americas, as in other parts of the world, migration trends have been reinforced by the increase in the number of people fleeing their countries, whether from natural catastrophes, or economic or political instability.
In addition, the report notes that a significant proportion of the increase in intra-American migration, however, can be attributed to persons fleeing conflict zones, natural catastrophes or conditions of economic collapse or underdevelopment.
Partnerships: the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
Financing: The Spanish Agency for International Development and Permanent Observer Mission of China to the OAS
Beneficiaries: (e.g. Country/Institutions/specific groups,etc.): OAS Member States
Website:

http://www.oas.org/documents/spa/press/SICREMI-2017-espanol-web-FINAL.pdf?utm_source=OAS+Press+Subscription+List&utm_campaign=bef75e4cfa-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2017_12_18&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c0f6eeace4-bef75e4cfa-415758697

The Establishment of Small Business Development Centres (SBDCs) in CARICOM Member States - Phase II

The Goal of the Caribbean SBDC programme is to contribute to the sustainable improvement of the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) sector in the CARICOM region with a view to increasing the capacity of the sector to contribute to economic growth, productivity, employment and standards of living, particularly for women and youth in the CARICOM region. Phase two of the project is designed to build on the work undertaken in the first phase with the first five beneficiary countries - Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Jamaica and Saint Lucia - while expanding the Caribbean adaptation of the U.S. SBDC model to an additional three countries - Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Kitts and Nevis and the Commonwealth of the Bahamas within the CARICOM region. The project will account the recently gained experience in the efforts at introducing and transferring the SBDC methodology in the region and will involve concentrated technical assistance throughout the process of consolidation and establishment of the model in the Caribbean.

Phase II Project Components – First Five Beneficiary Countries
? In partnership with the Caribbean Export Development Agency conduct Pro – Net Certificate train- the – trainer programmes for centre advisors
? Train – the – trainer programmes for centre advisors on the incorporation of disaster risk management strategies in business planning
? SBDC advisors trained in the use of value chain analyses to facilitate MSME participation and upgrading in local and regional value chains giving consideration to women and youth led enterprises.
? Conduct Value Chain Analyses for two selected high growth sectors identified by each of the first five beneficiary countries.
? Development of strategies for establishing links to promote trade among the clients of Caribbean SBDCs and targeted international SBDCs
? Assist in the development of alternative financing strategies for MSMEs in partnership with public funding agencies and private financial and insurance institutions paying particular attention to issues affecting women and youth entrepreneurs.
? Assist in the development of a governance model for the creation of a regional network of SBDCs to facilitate the sharing of best practices, the development of intra - regional trade linkages and bolster advocacy efforts for the regional MSME sector
Phase II Project Components – New Beneficiary Countries
? Analysis of current MSME support environment in country including situational and gap analysis and stakeholder mapping.
? Development of policy and implementation guide to support the elaboration of an MSME framework to underpin the adaptation of the SBDC model.
? Technical visits of designated inter – ministerial steering committee to the University of Texas at San Antonio SBDC and Washington D.C. to promote an understanding of the operation of the SBDC Model through exposure to best practices in network administration and MSME policy creation and oversight.
? Transference and adaptation of the SBDC Model through a week long Counsellor and Director Certification training programme and follow – up technical support and guidance in implementation
? Purchase of licenses and follow up training sessions in the use and customization of Neo Serra software which is designed to allow for the measurement of national MSME interventions in countries.

Beneficiaries: Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, The Commonwealth of the Bahamas

Partnerships and Financing: The programme is funded by the Permanent Mission of the United States to the OAS

Initiatives: MIGRATION - Prevention of crimes related to irregular migration in Mesoamerica
The project's objective is to contribute to the current efforts in the areas of crime prevention in the context of irregular migration, strengthening human and institutional capacities to prevent and combat these crimes and promoting public policies that protect irregular migrants' human rights, with particular attention to vulnerable groups and crime victims.

Activities: The project has three main components: prevention, combat and protection.
a) prevention, aiming to prevent crimes in the context of irregular migration raising awareness about the risks of migrating in irregular condition particularly developing media campaigns, education campaigns in schools, working with community leaders and journalists.

b) combat, aiming to face all crimes in the context of irregular migration such as migrant smuggling, trafficking in persons, extortions, kidnappings, document falsifications, among others; particularly training national authorities on border and documentation control and implementing a system for the exchange of information and illegal traffic alerts

c) protection, aiming to protect irregular migrant's human rights particularly of those vulnerable groups and victims of crime, through the design and implementation of special programs for protection of their rights.

Website: http://community.oas.org/programadeprevencionmigracionirregular

Beneficiaries: Countries: Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Mexico, Panama
Institutions: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministries of Interior, Ministries of Migration, Police, Justice Sector, Civil society.

Partnerships and Financing: The program is executed with funds from the European Union. Our main implementing partners are the International Organization for Migration and the UN Refugee Agency.

Continuous Reporting System on International Migration in the Americas - SICREMI
More people than ever are living abroad. In 2013, 232 million people, or 3.2 per cent of the world’s population, were international migrants, compared with 175 million in 2000 and 154 million in 1990. In 2013, migrants born in Latin America and the Caribbean represented the second largest diaspora group with the majority, 26 million, living in North America.

The growth of migration movements in the region has compelled national governments to take action to address some of the most urgent issues both in countries of origin, destination and/or transit. There have been efforts to conduct research into the phenomenon in order to help guide policies targeted at both the migrant population and sending and receiving communities. Research has been heavily constrained by a lack of periodic and current information to shed light on the main trends and characteristics of international migration in the region. Thus, the demand for education and health care services, commerce, housing, among other things, is based on estimations derived from the latest census-generated data, which at best is produced every ten years, not to mention the ever-changing nature of the phenomenon of migration. Also, international migration, and in this case, hemispheric migration, requires information at the regional level in order to provide input for policy dialogue and debate as well as for the formulation and execution of public policies on the subject.

The Organization of American States (OAS)-spearheaded Continuous Reporting System on International Migration in the Americas (SICREMI) is a concrete response to these challenges in the area of information gathering and reporting. It aims to contribute to the monitoring of international migration movements in the region through rigorous and up-to-date information on migration flows. It also covers the principal policies and programs which the governments of the hemisphere direct towards an ever-growing migrant population, both in the countries of the Americas themselves and in the countries of destination of their emigrants.

The partnership between the OAS and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) allows for an integral approach to the phenomenon in the Americas. The OECD contributes its experience in the development of its international migration information system for its Member Countries, the Permanent Observation System on Migration (SOPEMI), as well as the information on the emigrants of the Americas in OECD countries, where more than 80% of our migrants reside. The OAS, with its network of national correspondents, provides the information on emigrants from the Americas who settle in countries of the Americas, as well as updated information on the national legal framework and public policies governing international migration, providing a holistic perspective of migration issues in the hemisphere. Migration always entails receiving and sending countries, thus the partnership OAS-OECD allows the SICREMI to offer annually an overview both of those who migrate to the countries of the Americas, and of those who migrate to other continents.
VII. Timeline of the SICREMI project

Official project launch in March 2009, in conjunction with the OECD. During the first year, the tasks of technical project design and drawing up the working methodology were carried out jointly with the OECD and ECLAC -CELADE and also with the correspondents of the participating countries.

There have been two technical workshops with the participation of the national correspondents and OECD and OAS experts, in preparation of the SICREMI 2011 and 2012 reports respectively. The first report International Migration in the Americas was released on July 11, 2011, and the second on January 17th, 2013. The second report represented a significant increase in the informational content over the 2011 Report, featuring information such as immigration by category type and nationality, acquisition of nationality, emigration from the Americas to OECD countries through destination countries taking into account all of the nationalities of origin in the Americas, principal continents of origin of immigrants and a special section on remittances written by the Inter-American Development Bank. This Second Report was financed by Spain’s fund for the OAS. Currently, the OAS technical team is preparing the Third SICREMI report on International Migration in the Americas with the participation of twenty countries so far.

The SICREMI Report is positioned as a hemispheric benchmark in generating reliable and current information on flows, laws, and public policies in the area of migration, as well as increased institutional interaction at the national and international level (ECLAC, IADB, and the International Organization for Migration - IOM) in dealing with specific migration issues.

Activities:
The production of the third edition of the SICREMI report implies the following activities that are being implemented:
1. Invite those OAS Member states that are not yet participating in the project to join this regional effort.
2. Prepare and send the information request to national correspondents of participating countries
3. Prepare technical documents, organize and implement the third national correspondents technical workshop
4. Prepare the third edition of the report
5. Edit, translate and publish the report
6. Disseminate the report

Beneficiaries:
OAS Member States
National institutions linked to migration management such as Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Departments of Immigration, National Statistics Institutes, among others.
Migrant populations are indirect beneficiaries of the initiative.

Partnerships:
Organisation for Economic Development and Cooperation - OECD
Inter-American Development Bank

Both reports can be viewed at: http://www.migracionoea.org/sicremi/

Continuous Reporting System on International Migration in the Americas (SICREMI)

SICREMI aims to contribute to the monitoring of international migration movements in the region through rigorous and up-to-date information on migration flows. It also covers the principal policies and programs which the governments of the hemisphere direct towards an ever-growing migrant population, both in the countries of the Americas themselves and in the countries of destination to their emigrants.

The SICREMI report collects data from diverse sources (censuses, surveys, administrative records, etc.) in order to process and disseminate information regarding the magnitude, trends, and characteristics of international migration in the countries that participated in this first phase: Argentina, Belize, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico and Uruguay.
http://www.migracionoea.org/

Activities:
The methodology of this report is based on the Permanent Observation System on Migration (or SOPEMI) of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, adjusting to the needs of the region in accordance with a participatory process involving the countries of the Americas through a network of national correspondents and the participation of national and international organizations working in the field of migration. The information compiled under the project is used to prepare the Report on International Migration in the Americas, which is the principal document produced with the data compiled.The publication will evolve over time, incorporating more and more countries in America. As of today, 9 more countries have accepted to participate in the SICREMI 2012; Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Panama, Paraguay, Peru and Dominican Republic. The report will include in future years, an annual review of developments in migration policies. Its continuation requires the active support of the governments of the region.

Beneficiaies:
Member States of the OAS
National offices of migration
National Institutes of statistics
National institutes of population
Ministers of labor
Institutes for attention to migrants

Partnerships: ECLAC and OECD

Financing:
Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores del Gobierno de España
Agencia Española de Cooperacion Internacional para el Desarrollo (AECID)

The OAS Migration and Development Program, in response to mandate 17 of the Declaration of Port of Spain, constructed the Database on Legal Frameworks, Regulations, Policies, and Programs on Migration in the Americas (MILEX). One of the specific objectives of this database is to generate comparative matrices about the status of ratification, reserves, and deposits of international transfers applicable to the Inter-American System on human rights, with an emphasis on migrant human rights. In addition, the Program has implemented a virtual information tool and the Interactive Map of Temporary Employment Programs for Migrant Workers (MINPET) with the objective of offering the region an instrument for comparative learning that will promote safe, orderly and controlled migration processes.

Further, OAS has developed a portfolio of projects and technical studies in which various areas of the Organization participate; more than 21 discussion and analysis forums, 7 special sessions, and 3 workshops at the center of the Special Committee on Migration Issues (SCMI) have been carried out in order to analyze priority topics such as child and youth migration, migrant women, human capital flight, consular protection, migration and natural disasters, extra-continental migration, and the return of migrants to their community of origin, among others.