Labour Mobility and Social Inclusion (LMI)

The Labour Mobility and Social Inclusion (LMI) program helps countries in the East and Horn of Africa (EHoA) to use the full potential of mobility and regional integration to create an environment where people, both citizens and migrants, can fully contribute to the region's social and economic development.

LMI works in a number of key areas, including:

• Free movement and common market protocols
• Migrants' rights and gender-sensitive labour migration governance
• Diaspora engagement, remittances, labour mobility, and skills development
• Consular cooperation
• Bilateral labour migration agreements and ethical recruitment

LMI also conducts research and assessments to inform its work, including on migrant workers' vulnerabilities, gender and social protection, ethical recruitment, and bilateral labour migration agreements.

LMI's work is guided by relevant regional and global initiatives, such as the Africa 2063 Agenda, the AU Free Movement Protocol, the Revised Migration Policy Framework for Africa, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the Global Compact for Migration.

LMI works closely with the International Gender Champions (IGC) Nairobi Hub network and has developed a regional youth strategy (2021-2024) to share good practices on mainstreaming migration into the youth development agendas of a variety of stakeholders across the EHOA region.

The LMI program is important because it helps to protect the rights of migrants. When migrants have access to information and support, they are less likely to be exploited or abused. The program also works to improve the working conditions of migrants and to ensure that they have fair wages and benefits, and aims to create a more prosperous and inclusive region for everyone. When people can move freely, through a regular pathway and work in other countries, they can earn higher incomes and support their families back home. This also helps to build stronger economies and create more jobs for everyone.