Rabat — Amina Bouayach, President of Morocco’s National Human Rights Council (CNDH), has sounded the alarm on the escalating pressure on migrant rights amidst global political and economic tensions. Addressing a meeting of the African Migration Group in Geneva, Bouayach highlighted the growing impact of unilateral policies and the politicization of migration, particularly in the Global North. She emphasized that migration is increasingly being treated as a security issue rather than a human rights matter.
Bouayach also noted a broader global context of declining trust in international institutions, rising geopolitical tensions, and diminished international solidarity and resources, all of which are affecting the protection of migrants. According to the International Organization for Migration and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, migrants are facing heightened vulnerability to labor exploitation, unsafe living conditions, and limited access to justice, especially during economic or political crises.
Despite these challenges, Bouayach emphasized the crucial role of national human rights institutions in defending the rights of people on the move. “We aim, through our international advocacy in Geneva and New York, to develop new forms of cooperation that can ensure better protection of migrant rights within Africa,” she.
The Geneva meeting, attended by representatives from 23 African countries, is part of the work of the African Network of National Human Rights Institutions, where Morocco leads the working group on migration and migrant rights. Bouayach also highlighted international efforts to strengthen cooperation, including a 2025 agreement signed in Rabat with the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Migrant Workers, aimed at improving coordination, encouraging countries to ratify international conventions, and reinforcing monitoring and implementation mechanisms.
The meeting is taking place on the sidelines of the annual conference and General Assembly of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI), which Bouayach currently chairs.
Source: Impulsradio & Television Africa
