At the 2025 International Dialogue on Migration (IDM), Syeed Ahamed, CEO of IID, delivered a forthright keynote calling on governments to move from declarations to decisions and treat migration governance as a test of political will, not just technical capacity.
The Asia–Pacific regional session, moderated by Dyane Epstein, brought together states, UN agencies, civil society and experts under the theme: “Preserving properly governed migration as a global strategic asset for development that benefits all.” The session opened with remarks by Amy Pope, Director General of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), followed by Ahamed’s keynote and a panel discussion.
“Not a migration crisis – a governance crisis”
Ahamed began by grounding the discussion in stark numbers. During the two weeks of this regional IDM alone, more than a million others will cross borders seeking work, reuniting with family, or rebuilding their lives. Based on recent trends, over 300 people may die on migration routes in that same period.
“These people are not risking their lives because they reject the system,” he said. “but because our systems give them no safe, regular alternative.”
Almost seven years after the adoption of the Global Compact for Migration (GCM), Ahamed argued that implementation remains weak. Too many states still invest in externalisation and deterrence, he said, while safe and regular pathways remain narrow, recruitment abuses persist, and search and rescue at sea is obstructed even as thousands continue to die.
Asia–Pacific: migration as a cycle, not a line
Turning to Asia and the Pacific, Ahamed stressed that for millions of workers in the region, migration is not a one-way journey but a cycle.
“Contracts end, economic shocks bring people home, families call them back,” he noted. “How we manage return is a test of whether our systems are humane and strategic.”
If return means unemployment, debt and stigma, it becomes trauma and pushes people back into irregular migration. But when return is prepared and supported — with skills recognition, counselling, financial services, start-up capital and community-based reintegration — savings, skills and ideas flow back into local economies.
“Circular migration transforms brain drain into brain circulation – into shared gain,” he said, calling for joint wage-recovery and reintegration mechanisms so that “justice and opportunity do not stop at the border.”
Inclusion, narratives and three appeals
Ahamed stressed that “migration that benefits all” is impossible without inclusion and justice. Migration, he noted, is shaped by gender, age, class and status, with women workers, young migrants and people in irregular situations facing the highest risks.
Ignoring these realities deepens inequality across borders; confronting them through gender-responsive policies turns migration governance into rights-based practice advancing equality and social justice. He also warned that even systems will fail if narratives fuel fear.
Ahamed closed with three appeals:
- To governments: honour your GCM commitments. Put real budgets and institutions behind regular pathways, fair recruitment, decent work, return and reintegration, and climate-related mobility. Embed migration clearly and measurably in national development, climate and education plans.
- To international organisations and partners: match ambition with support — through data, technical assistance and financing, including for joint wage-recovery and reintegration mechanisms.
- To civil society, academia, business and migrants: keep pushing everyone to do better, bringing evidence, stories and innovations into policy spaces and holding decision-makers to account.
Looking ahead to two days of further panels and a concluding session, he ended on a hopeful note, looking forward to insights and ideas that may shape a story of foresight, cooperation and shared prosperity.