Dakar, 18 October 2024 – The International Organization for Migration (IOM) convened the Network of Legal Experts on Migration in West and Central Africa’s (NoLEM) second annual conference in Dakar, Senegal, from 14 to 16 October. The conference brought together various stakeholders to take stock of the progress the Network has made in the last year in its mission to promote an academically rigorous, evidence-based legal approach to migration governance in the region.

The participants, including members of the Network, IOM staff, representatives from affiliated international organizations, and donors, embarked on several objectives over the three days. The conference convened also NoLEM stakeholders, including Mme. Fatima Diallo, President of the UN Committee on Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, to discuss the current gaps in access to justice for migrant workers.

The conference began with the launch of NoLEM’s inaugural publication, Analysing Migrant Detention Legal Frameworks, which unveils a complex picture of migration-related detention in West and Central Africa that is often characterized by arbitrary imprisonment, human rights challenges, and a need for stronger legal frameworks to guard against abuses.

One of the principal recommendations in the Analysing Migrant Detention Legal Frameworks publication was “access to legal aid”, recognizing that legal assistance is a fundamental right for migrant detainees to enable them to challenge their detention, seek redress, and ensure their cases are heard fairly and impartially.

The group explored, among other topics, the most significant legal and institutional gaps that hinder access to vulnerable populations in West and Central Africa. The experts jointly agreed on the Network common vision, mission, objectives and values ensuring that NoLEM becomes a leading platform in aligning policy, law, and practice, promoting dignified mobility for sustainable development in Africa.

Based on comprehensive discussions on “Access to Justice”, two themes were considered relevant for the upcoming research, namely “Access to justice for migrant workers” and “Access to justice linked to climate change”. Participants decided that the initiative would be based on a dual approach: a comparative analysis of legal systems and action-oriented research. According to the Network, this methodology will not only allow for a better understanding of the challenges but also propose concrete solutions tailored to local realities.

Furthermore, the experts participated in a two-day knowledge exchange on legal clinics led by Ms. Lisa Bliss, Director of the Health Law Partnership Legal Services Clinic at the Georgia State University College of Law, and Magistrate Ruth Aurélie Josepha Kouankam Epse Schlick from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime. Other contributors included NoLEM expert Dieudonné Kossi of Togo, who manages a legal clinic in Lomé and serves as the Executive Director of the Legal and Social Expertise Clinic, and Clara Kasser-Tee, Vice President of the Network and leader of an interdisciplinary clinic on small and medium enterprises in Ghana.

These legal clinics aim to be established in universities across the region to create a collaborative platform where students and practitioners work together on real-world cases related to migrant rights. The initiative not only provides practical legal experience but also contributes to forming the next generation of legal professionals by enhancing their understanding of migration law and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration. Through this approach, the Network aspires to strengthen legal frameworks, thus facilitating access to justice and other migrant’s rights and advocacy for migrant communities.

Ms. Edlira de Andres, Project Manager, in her closing remarks, highlighted " The conference had served the dual purpose of inaugurating the launch of NoLEM’s first publication while setting the stage for further research into critical areas of migration legal frameworks ".

Prof. Abdou Khadre Diop, expressed great satisfaction with the quality of interactions and the commitment shown by all the experts to advance the Network’s objectives and set it on a path of excellence. He added " The week in Dakar provided participants an opportunity to solidify the Network’s vision, mission, objectives, and values. The meeting also crucially expanded capacities regarding legal clinics and facilitated an agreement on the research agenda for 2025 ".

The Network of Legal Experts on Migration is an initiative funded by the Swiss Confederation that provides a platform for legal experts and academia to share, discuss, and deliberate on legal matters pertinent to migration.

For more information on migration and detention, find the report here

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For more information please contact:

Edlira de Andrés, Network of Legal Experts on Migration in West and Central Africa, edeandres@iom.int