Alex Otti, governor of Abia State, has declared open the inaugural South East Migration Dialogue 2026 with a call for participants and stakeholders to translate the national migration framework into practical outcomes for the people of the South East.
Otti, while declaring the event open at the Government House, Umuahia, Wednesday, emphasised the need for stronger collaboration among governments, development partners, and other stakeholders to promote safe and regular migration.
Governor Otti, represented by his Deputy, Ikechukwu Emetu, said that migration should be orderly and stressed the need for a result-orientated outcome at the end of the dialogue.
‘The message for us is clear: migration must be orderly, lawful, protected and accompanied by social cohesion and opportunities for host communities.
‘This should not remain a resolution on paper. We should identify who will act by when, with what resources and against what measurable indicators.
‘The states do not seek to supplant the constitutional responsibilities of the federal government in immigration and foreign affairs. Rather, we seek to complement national policy through state-level skill development, data, investment, facilitation, migration protection and diaspora engagement.
‘We should fear a system that allows our people to travel without skills, protection, strategy and/or connection to home. The southeast does not merely want its people to succeed abroad. We want their success abroad to be strengthened in the prosperity of the communities and the country they call home,’ Otti stated.
Otti, who further urged participants to pursue five practical outcomes, including a regional framework, building digital skills, promotion of safe migration, diaspora development and protection and reintegration of returnees, which Abia is already doing, commended the organisers for convening the programme at a time ‘when migration has become not merely a matter of human mobility, but a strategic question of human capital, economic development, national security, and international opportunity’.
In her goodwill message, the wife of the Abia State Governor, Priscilla Otti, called for stronger collaboration among governments, civil society organisations, development partners and other stakeholders to promote the safety, dignity and welfare of Nigerians on the move.
The First Lady, who was represented by Uche Eme Uche. The professor and Commissioner for Tertiary Education recalled painful experiences of young people deceived by traffickers and families losing their life savings to irregular migration agents, as well as migrants facing detention, death in deserts or dangerous journeys across the seas, and noted that it was the need to confront such realities that made the South East Migration Dialogue particularly important.
Aliyu Tijani Ahmed, director general, National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons, expressed appreciation to Governor Otti for hosting the dialogue, noting that the decision to host it in Abia was a demonstration of the commitment of Governor Otti to responsible migration governance, protection of vulnerable persons and sustainable reintegration of returning migrants, and commended him for giving N1 million each to Abia indigenes who recently returned from South Africa.
Tijani-Ahmed explained that the dialogue provided, for the first time, a regional platform for stakeholders from the five Southeast states to examine migration issues affecting the region and develop practical solutions, and noted that the Southeast had unique migration experiences, including significant internal and international mobility, a strong diaspora presence, irregular migration, human trafficking, migrant smuggling and return migration, hence the need for the dialogue.
He described the initiative as an important step towards decentralising migration governance in Nigeria, explaining that decentralisation did not mean fragmentation of national migration policy but the translation of national commitments into coordinated action at state and local levels.
Also, the representative of the Chief of Mission, International Organisation for Migration (IOM), Ukamaka Osigwe Anyamaechi; the Country Director, International Returns and Reintegration Assistance (IRARA), Roland Nwoha; and the National Coordinator, Civil Society Network on Migration and Development (CSONetMADE), Emeka Obiezu, appreciated the Abia state government for hosting the dialogue and commended Governor Alex Otti’s achievements.
They highlighted the South East’s migration history and diaspora contributions, stressing the need for partnerships to provide accurate information, protect migrants, expand skills and employment opportunities, and support returnees’ reintegration.
Earlier in his welcome address, the South East Coordinator of the Civil Society Network on Migration and Development (CSoNetMADE), Jeto Nwadi, while disclosing the theme ‘Partnership for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration’, noted that migration was not simply the movement of people but an issue closely connected to livelihoods, development, labour mobility, family welfare and reunification, climate change, human rights and the aspirations of young and old people.
The dialogue brought together policymakers, migration experts, development partners, civil society organisations, and other stakeholders to deliberate on migration issues, share evidence-based policy solutions, and strengthen regional cooperation for sustainable development.