Rabat – United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi has said that asylum applications in Morocco have “increased considerably over the past few years.”
Grandi commented on Morocco’s performance on accepting asylum applications at the First Global Refugee Forum in Geneva on December 17.
The event opened on the eve of the International Migrants Day, celebrated globally today, December 18.
Morocco is participating in the forum.
The UN top official told the press that the UN worked “very well with the Moroccan government on all aspects concerning” refugees.
He described the cooperation as “very fruitful.”
Read Also: UNHCR: ‘Morocco Sets an Example in Immigration, Asylum Policy
Morocco is both a transit and home for many refugees and sub-Saharan migrants.
The symposium in Geneva is the first of its kind, convening refugees, heads of state and government, UN officials and NGOs interested in human rights and migratory issues.
The event is set to cover several issues, including arrangements for burden and responsibility sharing, as well and protection capacity and education.
On December 18, the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on world leaders to “give life” to the Global Compact for Safe Regular Migration adopted Marrakech Pact last year in Morocco.
In a message on International Migrants Day, Guterres said that “all migrants have the right to equal protection of all their fundamental rights”.
Leaders and representatives from 164 countries adopted the global migration pact on the first day of the migration conference in Marrakech in December 2018.
The compact aims “to better manage international migration, address its challenges, and strengthen migrants’ rights while contributing to sustainable development.”
