A seminar for the launch of the "Joint Migration and Development Initiative (JMDI)", implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), will be held this Friday in Rabat, with the aim of strengthening the contribution of migration to development by highlighting its social dimension.

Funded by the European Union and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, the JMDI programme focuses on the contribution of migrants to local development and aims to strengthen the capacities of local administrations, the organisers state in a press release.

This three-year programme has a total budget of 9.5 million dollars and covers 16 projects in eight target countries (Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Nepal, Philippines, Senegal, Tunisia and Morocco).

It aims to strengthen existing actions, implemented by local authorities and civil society organisations, which integrate migration into local development issues, both in the territory of origin and destination, the press release explains.

This event, organised by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in collaboration with the Ministry in charge of Moroccans Residing Abroad and Migration Affairs, will be an opportunity to present the JMDI programme approach and two projects supported in Morocco (Souss-Massa-Draa and Oriental), as well as to allow the programme's beneficiaries to present their projects.

The JMDI programme, implemented in partnership with the IOM, the International Training Centre of the International Labour Organization (ITC-ILO), UN Women, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), aims to increase the impact of migration and development initiatives of local authorities in partnership with civil society organisations and to connect local authorities with each other and with other local actors to facilitate dialogue and partnerships.