Namira Najm outlines a more integrated migration management system for The Gambia

Ambassador Namira Negm, an expert in international law and migration and director of the African Migration Observatory, held talks with the Director General of the Gambian Department of Immigration, Ebrima Mbob, in the capital Banjul, as part of moves aimed at strengthening institutional cooperation in the field of migration governance and the development of data management systems.

The meeting took place at the headquarters of the Immigration Department of the Ministry of the Interior in The Gambia, where the two sides discussed ways to support national capabilities in the areas of migration data, and to expand the use of modern digital tools and artificial intelligence-based technologies.

Developing migration data systems

Ambassador Najm said that the African Migration Observatory, as an institution of the African Union, is committed to supporting member states by providing technical assistance, implementing capacity-building programs, and developing migration data systems that promote evidence-based decision-making on the continent.

She added that the current stage requires accelerating the integration of digital tools and smart applications in managing immigration data, noting that this represents a fundamental pillar for enhancing the efficiency of national institutions and raising the quality of planning and policies.

Najm stressed the importance of improving coordination between different government institutions in The Gambia and addressing the challenges associated with data fragmentation, in order to ensure the building of a more integrated and effective system for managing migration information.

Immigration databases are scattered

For his part, the Director General of the Immigration Department reviewed a number of challenges, most notably the limited technical capabilities in using artificial intelligence technologies and modern digital tools, in addition to the dispersal of immigration databases among a number of government agencies, which affects the efficiency of data-based decision-making.

He called for strengthening technical cooperation with the African Migration Observatory, developing unified mechanisms for data exchange, in addition to a proposal to establish a specialized migration school in Gambia, to be a national center for training personnel in the areas of training, capacity building and migration management.

These discussions take place on the sidelines of a technical workshop organized by the African Migration Observatory in Banjul on capacity building in migration data management, with the participation of government officials, experts and international partners.

This cooperation comes within the framework of a broader African approach led by the African Migration Observatory to enhance migration governance, through the development of data systems, support for institutional integration, and leveraging digital transformations, in order to contribute to building more accurate and sustainable policies at the level of the countries of the continent.

The meeting was attended by Laith Zain Al-Abidin from the African Migration Observatory and the general coordinator of the workshop in Banjul. .