8th Pan-African Forum on Migration: MP Bahdja El Amali in Botswana
BY: Hana Saada
ALGIERS- According to a study conducted by the Boston Consulting Group and the International Organization for Migration, migrants, if considered a country, would boast the world’s third-largest economy, surpassing even Japan. The collective GDP generated by these industrious individuals amounts to a staggering $9,000 billion. It is this remarkable insight that has inspired the theme for the upcoming 8th Pan-African Forum on Migration.
Distinguished attendees at this event will include Dr. Bahdja El Amali, Member of the People’s National Assembly and Chair of the Committee on Transport, Industry, Communications, Energy, Science, and Technology of the African Parliament. Taking place from October 31 to November 2 in Gaborone, the capital of Botswana, the Forum will delve into the theme of “Strengthening Free Movement and Trade Linkage in the AfCFTA: Maximizing the Development Benefits of Migration and Labor Migration.”
The Forum aims to explore Africa’s potential as an integrated economy, capable of fostering a new era of progress by dismantling the barriers that hinder migration and human mobility, which are intrinsically tied to trade. It is evident that without some degree of liberalization in the movement of people, meaningful trade and continental integration will remain elusive.
Consequently, the Forum will emphasize the crucial relationship between the free movement of goods and services facilitated by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the free movement of people. By doing so, it seeks to harness the advantages of regional integration and trade, ultimately propelling Africa towards unprecedented growth and prosperity.
