Spotlight: Migration policies should use "positive energy" in global context: Chinese official

China's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office at Geneva, Ma Zhaoxu, highlighted Thursday the need to adopt constructive and positive-thinking policies going forward to deal with the unprecedented number of people forced to leave their homes today.

"Due to wars, armed conflicts and natural disasters, forced migration has hit record high. In some countries and regions, exclusion against migrants is on the rise," Ma remarked in the IOM's Council first special session, which celebrated China's accession to the organization Thursday morning.

"We need to discard the 'zero-sum' mentality and fully recognize the important role of migrants as bridges and belts in the economic, social and cultural development of their countries," he added.

According to the diplomat, migration directives should be assimilated into national development strategies, with developed countries providing financial and technical assistance to developing states.

Migration policies must also be in line with the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), "enabling migration as positive-energy' in the promotion of global economic and social development."

Ma also called for holistic approaches to address the root causes of migration.

Europe saw over 1 million migrants and refugees reach its shores last year because of protracted unrest in Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq.

In light of complex challenges, Ma stressed that push-factors including armed conflicts, social unrest, extreme poverty should be dealt with through peaceful negotiations and pragmatic approaches which strive for common development.

On a national level, Ma reminded that Beijing's expanding reforms and opening-up has also led to an increase in the level of exchanges with people hailing from foreign countries.

With China now a country of origin, transit and destination, new challenges have arisen, Ma explained, with the number of entries and exits by foreigners reaching 51.92 million last year.

The official also reminded that China has the largest diaspora in the world, with over 62 million Chinese living overseas.

"The Chinese government attaches great importance to migration management and is devoted to the promotion of orderly and sound movement of migrants," Ma said.

"However, China still faces quite a number of challenges in promoting the integration of migrants, reducing irregular migration, combating human trafficking and smuggling. We would like to enhance exchange and cooperation with the international community to jointly address the challenges in an effective way," he added.

Created in 1951, the purpose of the IOM is to help ensure adequate migration management, promote international cooperation on migration issues and provide humanitarian assistance to migrants including refugees and internally displaced people. Endit