Women and Migration: Promoting health all through the migration experience

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Women and Migration Promoting health all through
the migration experience
Blandine Mollard Project Officer, Gender Issues
Coordination, IOM
Hacettepe University Symposium-11 march 2010
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Outline

• Overview of womens migration today
• Health challenges and opportunities posed by
  womens migration
• IOM responses and ideas for further action

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At the Global level close to equal numbers

• By 2010, 49 of all migrants are projected to be
  women

• Nearly as many women as men have migrated over
  the past 50 years. In 1960, women made up for 47
  of migrants

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At the regional level high disparities

• Regions of destination
• Africa (46.8) steady increase in female
  migrants
• Asia (44.6) Female migration dominate in some
  countries.
• Europe (52.3) in 2010 female migrants will
  represent of all migrants
• Northern and Latin America and the Caribean 50
• Arab Region male migrants far outnumber women
• Turkey in 2010, 52 of all migrants will be
  women

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How do women migrate?

• Voluntary migration
• Labour migrants (regular or irregular),
  long-term, seasonal/temporary
• Secondary migrants within family regrouping
• Forced migration
• Refugees or asylum seekers
• Victims of trafficking

Migrate more and more independently
Forced movements hold gender specific risks for
women
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Reasons to migrate

• Although women are affected by same push and pull
  factors as men
• Poverty
• Conflict
• Labour market demand
• Wage differentials
• Networks and ties abroad

Gender strongly influences the conditions and
outcomes of the migration process
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Gender as a determinant of migrants health status

• Before migration Gender influences education
  opportunities, access to information, health
  knowledge and status, family responsibilities and
  experience of violence/discrimination.

Choice of migration channels priority to
smugglers, no information on asylum grounds,
Vulnerability to human trafficking, betrayal in
the family/intimate partner.
Levels of gender inequalities in CoO condition
the migration experience.
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Gender as a determinant of migrants health status

• In transit when travelling, especially in cases
  of forced/irregular migration dual vulnerability
  as women and migrants

High risk of physical and sexual abuse from
smugglers, other migrants, law enforcement and
border management officials,
Reduced acess to hygiene facilities. No access to
contraceptives or reproductive health services.
Increased risk of HIV/AIDS or STI.
In detention or in case of deportation, high
risks of rape and increased vulnerability for
pregnant women.
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Gender as a determinant of migrants health status

• In countries of destination
• Gender influences the type of legal status
  migrant women enjoy
• and the opportunities to integrate to the labour
  markert

Migrant womens immigration status is often tied
to their partner, father, or employer, creating
dependance and reluctance to report domestic
violence. Irregular migrants reluctant to acess
health providers by fear of deportation.
Migrant women concentrated in occupations poorly
regulated, high level of health risks and
injuries and exposure to psychological, physical
and sexual abuse.
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Gender as a determinant of migrants health status
In countries of destination

• Gender influences the opportunities women will
  have to
• integrate socially in host society

Language proficiency and cultural barriers will
impact the acess to health information and
services.
Lack of migrant-friendly health services have
disproportionate impact on women.
Lack of family planning services increase
likelihood of unwanted pregnancies
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Gender as a determinant of migrants health status
In countries of destination

• In cases where integration is difficult, migrant
  women can be exposed to domestic violence or
  traditional harmful practices with important
  effects on their health
• Forced and early marriages
• Honour crimes
• Dowry-related violence
• Female genital mutilations

Those health consequences can strongly impede
their integration
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Migration brings opportunities for health

• Migration influences gender relations by either
  perpetuating inequalities or challenging them.
• Migrants remittances support health, food
  and education expenses, thus improving the well
  being of communities left-behind
• New roles and behaviours for migrants and
  families left behind
• Income provider, greater participation in
  community decision-making
• Migration triggers new norms in migrants
  families Higher age of marriage, lower
  fertility, greater educational expectation for
  girls, greater labour force participation. UNDP
  Human Development Report 2009
• Change of status of women within the
  household can lead to better health for her and
  her children but can also trigger gender-based
  violence.

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Obstacles to migrant womens health

• Most government health surveillance does not
  disaggregate by immigration status (lack of data)
• Migrants not included in policies and programs
• Lack of coordination across sectors (health,
  migration, labour, etc.)
• Victims of trafficking often unidentified and not
  referred to appropriate health services

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IOM response

• Research and Policy guidance
• Health promotion for migrants
• HIV/AIDS
• Reproductive health
• Prevention of SGBV
• Information campaigns to prevent trafficking
• Training for health providers
• Direct assistance to migrants victims of
  exploitation

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Key projects
Research

• IOM study, Stolen Smiles Physical and mental
  health consequences of women and adolescents
  trafficked in Europe
• trafficked women aged between 15-45,
• 92 of respondents forced into sex work
• 76 physically assaulted by traffickers
• 90 experienced sexual violence
• lack of predictability of violence
• Severe concurrent physical and mental health
  symptoms
• 44 diagnosed for an STI.
• 17 had at least one abortion during the time
• 95 showed signs of depression
• 56 showed symptoms qualifying for PTSD

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Key projects

• Preventing human trafficking
• Through its programme, IOM estimates a third of
  victims of trafficking are mothers.
• IOM launched a nationwide public information
  campaign to raise awareness of human
  traffickings impact on children and families. 
•   An advertisement entitled Have You Seen my
  Mother? was broadcasted on TV channels and
  cinemas throughout Turkey.
• IOM Turkey has facilitated and been managing the
  government owned 157 helpline for trafficked
  persons since May 2005. As of February 2010, 157
  helpline coordinated the rescue of 165 trafficked
  persons in Turkey.

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Key projects

• Research and guidance
• Caring for Trafficked Persons Guidance for
  Health Providers
• strengthen health system response
• provides evidence-based tools for health
  providers
• provides practical, non-clinical advice
• recognize some of the associated health problems
• identify safe and appropriate approaches to
  providing healthcare for trafficked persons.

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Key projects

• Training health providers
• Adressing Female Genital Mutilation
• In Geneva, as part of a project to address Female
  Genital Mutilation among 4 migrant communities,
  IOM has been informing and sensitizing health
  professionals.
• A symposium was held
• -to inform them of the consequences of FGM on
  womens and girls reproductive, sexual and
  mental health,
• -to encourage the exchange of best practices in
  providing the best medical care, psychological
  support
• -to build networks for the protection of girls.

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Key recommendations

• Improve data collection
• Advocate for the inclusion of migrant women in
  policies and programs
• Remove barriers to SRH services for migrant women
  regardless of immigration status
• Improve health response for the most vulnerable
  migrants (women migrants who are victims of
  violence)
• Develop initiatives to eradicate the culture of
  violence against women, as a root cause of
  trafficking and exploitation of women and girls.
• Train health providers to respond to GBV among
  migrants
• Promote regular migration for the benefit of all

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Key messages

• Women migrants may face multiple
  vulnerabilities and may suffer gender-based
  violence at all stages of migration
• Migration is not a health risk but the
  conditions surrounding the migration process can
  lead to increased vulnerability
• Need to tackles problems in accessing
  comprehensive reproductive health services affect
  the health of migrant women

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• Tesekkür Ederim !

Tesekkür Ederim !