Paris – 2018 Nobel Peace Prize winner, Nadia Murad, attended a ceremony today marking the signing of an agreement between the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and France to provide safe passage to the country for vulnerable groups from Iraq. Initiated by Murad and French President Emmanuel Macron in October 2018, the agreement will help to provide protection and admission to France for to up to 100 Yazidi women and their families as part of a Humanitarian Admission Programme. 

IOM teams in Iraq and France will support these families in their journey to France by providing health checks, pre-departure information, movement assistance, the provision of operational escorts and other forms of departure and arrival assistance.  Upon arrival in France, families will be referred to local NGOs providing social, medical and administrative support during the first year.    

The initiative is coordinated by the French Ministries of Europe and Foreign Affairs and the Interior, as well as Nadia’s Initiative, a foundation advocating for victims of sexual violence. It is funded by France’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  

“This new initiative is the result of solidarity and the expression of an international responsibility-sharing mechanism for the protection of the most vulnerable,” said Sara Abbas, IOM France Head of Office.  

“The Humanitarian Admission Programme is based on a strong partnership between the French and Iraqi governments, international organizations and civil society organizations,” she continued.  

The overwhelming scale and complex nature of global displacement has drawn the international community’s focus to the need for safety and protection for forcibly displaced communities. 

Globally, Humanitarian Admission Programmes ensure safe, regular and sustainable migration. As a complementary pathway established by States, the programmes offer protection and solutions for particularly vulnerable groups. They are based on non-discriminatory and protection-sensitive approaches and complement already existing resettlement programmes.  

For more information, please contact IOM France, Sara Abbas at Tel: +33 (0)1 4044 0691, Email: sabbas@iom.int