Second Cross-Border Meeting on Migration Between Belize and Mexico Held
Measures on how to improve and increase the number of Mexicans who enter Belize were discussed today during the second Cross-Border Meeting on Migration between Belize and Mexico. The meeting discussed the shifting nature and challenges faced by migrants and formed a task force to improve migration management at both sides of the border. This falls in line with the initiative’s wider goal of developing and implementing strategies for regular, orderly, and safe migration across the border. The number of migrants coming in from Mexico increased last year by four thousand. This is according to the Director of Immigration, Diana Locke.
Diana Locke
Diana Locke, Director Immigration and Nationality Services of Belize.
“On our part at Immigration we look forward to entering into and continuing the discussion on ways to improve and increase the travel of Mexicans into Belize in the areas of tourism, education, labor and many other areas. Our 2017 statistics show the arrival of thirty five thousand five hundred and ninety two Mexicans into Belize. This is an increase of four thousand from the previous year. And since the reintroduction of the Belize Border Crossing Card, over six hundred Mexicans have applied for and received this card. We look forward in increasing these numbers.”
Miguel Angel Guerrero
Miguel Angel Guerrero, Deputy Chief of Mission, Mexican Embassy
“We hope that the sharing information, experiences, progresses, good practices will be successful in this meeting to allow us to create mechanisms to follow up this phenomenon of migration in this region nowadays that we are facing together. The twentieth first century is the face of a wave of migration at a scale that influences everywhere. The definition of migration is changing. We need to redefine international relations now.”
Rene Chuc
Rene Chuc, Head of Office, IOM Belize
“The expected outcome of this specific meeting which is session two, we have one major specific objective which is to set up a task force or task working committee. This task force working committee is expected to basically engage their counterparts, ministries, departments both Belize and Mexico to follow up on specific issues. Of course since it is a government led process they are the ones who would set the priorities of the topics and issues that they would want to discuss. However at least one of the topics that we will be recommending to both governments is to discuss about national security and the promotion of programs that would ensure free flow or better flow, organized flow of migrants through both borders.”
The meeting had participation of several government ministries, the United Nations Migration Agency (IOM), and the Embassy of Mexico in Belize.
