IOM works with the Government of Ethiopia (GoE), migrants, cooperating partners, and key stakeholders to uphold the rights and meet the needs of migrants and their communities and promote the benefits and address the challenges of migration. The scale and complexity of contemporary human mobility requires effective management of the social, economic, political, developmental, environmental and humanitarian factors underpinning migration. 
Working at all stages of the migration process, in close collaboration with the GoE, and guided by the principle of safe, orderly and humane migration, IOM’s migration governance work and initiatives in Ethiopia focus on protecting and assisting migrants in vulnerable situations, optimizing the developmental potential of migration, and regulating migration for The benefit of all. Parallel to providing protection assistance to migrants in vulnerable situations at all stages of the migration cycle, IOM engages in strengthening institutions and staff capacity, establishing multi-stakeholder migration management coordination mechanisms, supporting legislative and regulatory reform, and mobilizing statistics to facilitate evidence-based policymaking.

Intervention Areas

Immigration and Border Management

IOM supports the Government of Ethiopia in improving the policy, legislation, operational systems, human resources and administrative and technical structures required to respond more effectively to diverse migration and border management challenges.

Labour Migration and Human Development

To maximize positive aspects of labour migration, including harnessing its potential for development, IOM Ethiopia conducts strategic initiatives, such as the development of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) capacities to provide quality training to prospective migrant workers.

Migrant Protection and Assistance 

IOM Ethiopia is committed to addressing the needs and promoting and upholding the rights of people on the move. Migration Response Centres (MRCs) operate along key migration routes, providing direct assistance, including food and temporary shelter, information, and service referrals to people on the move. Working collaboratively, MRCs bring together key partners to facilitate the identification of migrants in vulnerable situations and ensure that they receive appropriate, immediate and longer-term support.

 Migration Response Centres - July 2022 update

Migration Response Plan

The regional Migrant Response Plan (MRP) for the Horn of Africa and Yemen 2021 – 2024 is a migrant-focused humanitarian and development response strategy for vulnerable migrants from the Horn of Africa, specifically Somalia, Djibouti and Ethiopia, moving to and from Yemen. It provides an essential strategic framework to ensure a whole-of-society, wholeof-route and whole-of-government approach to addressing migrants’ protection needs, risks and vulnerabilities. The MRP 2021 – 2024 is the result of an intra-regional field-driven strategic planning process, bringing together 23 appealing organizations, in consultation with host governments and authorities, United Nations agencies, civil society organizations (CSO), international and national non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as well as migrants and host communities. It complements affected countries’ efforts and the work of humanitarian and development actors throughout the region in supporting safe migration, providing life-saving assistance and services, improving protection and promoting sustainable reintegration and community stabilization. The MRP provides a coherent and consistent response framework to the needs of migrants and their host communities within the Horn of Africa/Yemen region.

Read the Migration Response Plan 

Migration Policy

IOM Ethiopia leads strategic coordination mechanisms that aim to foster whole of society approaches by providing technical inputs into developing policies that govern most countertrafficking initiatives in the country. IOM supports the GoE formed Inter-Ministerial Working Group to facilitate evidence-informed migration management through the generation, analysis and dissemination of migration data.

Return and Reintegration

Safe and dignified return and sustainable reintegration are essential parts of a comprehensive approach to migration management.
Together with a vast network of partners comprising governmental authorities and non-governmental partners both in the region
and in the countries of origin, IOM Ethiopia assists migrants in making informed decisions on their return and reintegration back
into their communities.

Overview of Migrant Returns 2018 - May 2022