ISLAMABAD: The United Nations (UN) has launched its Network on Migration (NM) in Pakistan to tackle human trafficking and migrant smuggling, Pakistani state media reported on Monday.
The body, set up in 2018 and led by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), unites over 30 UN agencies to help governments promote safe migration and address trafficking, smuggling, labor rights and migrant access to services.
Thousands of young Pakistanis migrate illegally in search of jobs every year. A 2023 UN Office on Drugs and Crime and European Union (UNODC-EU) study found that 24,000 Pakistanis unlawfully entered EU states in the past three years.
The Network on Migration launch was announced at a UN-hosted event in Islamabad that also featured Pakistan’s first Migration Multi-Partner Trust Fund program, according to the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP).
“The establishment of this network is a testament to our collective resolve to ensure that migration is safe, orderly and regular,” APP quoted UN Resident Coordinator Mohamed Yahya as saying.
