UN conference adopts migration pact, despite withdrawals
- US, Australia and several other countries have pulled out of the pact, which has split governments and sparked resignations
A United Nations conference adopted a migration pact in front of leaders and representatives from around 150 countries in Morocco on Monday, despite a string of withdrawals.
The Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration – finalised at the UN in July after 18 months of talks – was formally approved in Marrakesh at the start of a two-day conference.
Billed as the first international document on managing migration, it lays out 23 objectives to open up legal migration and discourage illegal border crossings, as the number of people on the move globally has surged to more than 250 million.
Describing it as a “road map to prevent suffering and chaos”, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres sought to dispel what he called a number of myths around the pact, including claims it will allow the UN to impose immigration policies on member states.
