VZCZCXRO4150
PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHDS #2493/01 2930450
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 200450Z OCT 09
FM AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6545
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEPADJ/CJTF HOA PRIORITY
RUEWMFD/HQ USAFRICOM STUTTGART GE PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADDIS ABABA 002493 
 
DEPT FOR PRM, AF/E:JWiegert, G/TIP, CA/VO, CA/FPP 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SMIG KTIP KHLS ASEC AORC INS IOM ML NG SG ET
SUBJECT: ETHIOPIA - VISUALIZING IRREGULAR MIGRATION PATTERNS 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY:  On October 1, International Centre for Migration 
Policy Development (ICMPD) officials publicized i-Map, a tool that 
visually maps irregular migration patterns, and recent efforts to 
bring the GoE on board as an information-sharing partner.  Under the 
auspices of the Mediterranean Transit Migration Dialogue, Frontex 
and Europol spurred the creation of this system, which combines a 
secure, members-only interface with a public website that 
illustrates key migration routes, enhancing irregular migration 
information sharing by partner countries and agencies.  Given 
Ethiopia's prominence in two major irregular migration routes, ICMPD 
officials are reaching out to the Government of Ethiopia.  To date, 
the GoE is receptive to this multilateral information-sharing tool, 
which includes government and non-governmental partners.  By 
increasing GoE awareness and introspection, this dialogue and tool 
have the capacity to bolster Ethiopia's capacity to combat irregular 
migration.  End Summary. 
 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
i-Map and the Mediterranean Transit Migration Dialogues 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
¶2. (SBU) ConOff attended a meeting at the Dutch Embassy to publicize 
an interactive map on migration (i-Map) tool and recent efforts to 
bring the GoE on board.  This initiative falls under the 
Mediterranean Transit Migration (MTM) Dialogue - an informal, 
intergovernmental dialogue addressing the migration-security and 
migration-development nexus in the region.  Within this policy 
context, Frontex and Europol teamed up with ICMPD to develop the 
i-Map concept.  This tri-lingual tool allows for visualization of 
major migration routes, while also furnishing hyperlinks to analysis 
and reports on a secure interface.  Detailed information on this 
secure portal includes interception and apprehension details, 
smuggling and trafficking activities, reception and 
detention/retention of irregular migrants, asylum and protection 
issues, and return and readmission.  The i-Map groups profiles into 
three categories - national (country profiles), regional (principal 
migration routes), and local (focusing on migration hubs).  The 
i-Map also provides the big picture view of irregular migration, 
highlighting route changes as enforcement improves along certain 
legs of key routes. 
 
 
¶3. (SBU) Under the auspices of the MTM Dialogue, partner countries 
are harnessing the i-Map to examine irregular migration patterns, 
routes, and flows.  To date, thirty-seven partner states and 
agencies can access the MTM i-Map.  The partner agencies include the 
ICMPD, Europol, Frontex, INTERPOL, UN Office on Drugs and Crime, 
UNHCR, and Odysseus Academic Network.  The detailed information 
within i-Map comes from the MTM partner states - an effort to build 
trust and foster ownership of the tool.  ICMPD officials noted that 
they emphasize the "transit" in Mediterranean Transit Migration to 
facilitate information sharing.  (Note: Some nations are less 
willing to share internal migration data for security reasons but 
are able to share transit data.  End Note.)  Open source material 
complements the state-provided data, with partner agencies 
performing quality checks on every profile.  Regular information 
exchange with partners and daily press screening ensures currency of 
i-Map information. 
 
----------------- 
Engaging Ethiopia 
----------------- 
¶4. (SBU) Ethiopia is both a source and a transit country in two of 
the three major irregular migration routes.  The East African route 
begins in the Horn of Africa, heads north to Italy or Malta via 
Sudan, Libya, and Egypt.  The second major route, dubbed the East 
Mediterranean Route, begins in the Horn of Africa, Asia, or Central 
Asia, with migrants heading to Greece, Cyprus, or Bulgaria via 
Turkey.  Ethiopia's prominence in these two routes spurred ICMPD and 
the MTM dialogue to engage the GoE.  The ICMPD also identified 
Senegal, Mali, and Niger as new partner countries. 
 
¶5. (SBU) ICMPD officials held initial discussions with the GoE 
regarding the i-Map initiative.  Various Ethiopian authorities, 
including officials from Ministry of Capacity Building, 
revenue/customs, the Federal Police Commission, and the Ministries 
of Foreign Affairs, Capacity Building, Justice, and Labor/Social 
Affairs met with the i-Map team.  ICMPD officials described the 
initial contact with the GoE as "positive," citing a verbal 
agreement to develop the irregular migration map first, followed by 
a migration and development map.  To maintain momentum, the ICMPD 
established a temporary office in Addis Ababa, naming Jean Lanoue as 
the on-site contact in Ethiopia. 
 
------------------ 
U.S. on the i-Map? 
------------------ 
¶6. (SBU) ICMPD officials mentioned previous meetings with U.S. and 
Canada on the idea of developing a Western Hemisphere Map.  However, 
 
ADDIS ABAB 00002493  002 OF 002 
 
 
they noted that the United States is currently not a partner country 
of the Mediterranean Transit Migration Dialogue.  Therefore, U.S. 
officials currently do not have access to the secure interface 
portion of the MTM i-Map website. 
 
¶7. (SBU) COMMENT:  By increasing GoE awareness and introspection, 
this dialogue and tool have the capacity to bolster Ethiopia's 
capacity to combat irregular migration.  On an internal level, this 
multilateral information sharing may force increased communication 
between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Administration for 
Refugees and Returnees.  Currently, these two agencies share 
responsibility for illegal migration issues.  The MTM i-Map project 
also fosters external cooperation with information sharing between 
the GoE, other partner countries, and several non-governmental 
entities.  On a regional level, engaging in the MTM i-Map project 
bolsters the East African Police Chiefs' Cooperation Organization 
(EAPCCO) efforts to combat smuggling and trafficking in the region. 
Given Ethiopia's unstable neighborhood and porous borders, a clearer 
picture of irregular migration issues will advance Ethiopia's 
capacity to secure its borders and combat irregular migration.  End 
comment. 
 
MEECE