Peer learning #4
January 2026
Cities Strengthening Migrant Worker Welfare Services, from pre-departure to reintegration
On 21 January, United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), as part of our Local Coalition for Migrants and Refugees (LCMR), convened an online City-to-City Peer Learning Event on local and regional government (LRG) actions to strengthen services for migrant workers along the full migration journey, from pre-departure to reintegration. Organised in collaboration with the City of Dubai, Quezon City, the Middle East Centre for Training and Development (MECTD), UCLG MEWA, and UCLG ASPAC, the session brought together around 70 participants from 33 local and regional governments, alongside civil society, international organisations, academia, and city networks.
Opened by UCLG Secretary General Emilia Saiz, the event built on a joint study presented by Dubai’s Permanent Committee of Labour Affairs (PCLA) and the Quezon City Migration and Development Council (QC‑MD), highlighting how city-led cross‑corridor collaboration can improve migrant worker welfare. Their joint work, conducted with MECTD, examines the services each city provides—such as legal redress, pre‑departure orientation, psychosocial support, and reintegration measures—and identifies concrete opportunities for partnership between labour‑sending and receiving cities.
Cities as “fast responders” for migrant workers
Throughout the session, local and regional governments underlined their role as fast responders that implement care‑centred policies and treat migrant workers as neighbours entitled to full access to local services, regardless of status. Dubai shared its post‑arrival orientation training for platform and lower‑income workers, a programme launched in 2016 with MECTD and private sector partners to provide cultural, legal, and health and safety information, as well as avenues for grievance and redress. Quezon City spotlighted its Reintegration Fair, which offers returning migrants livelihood opportunities, psychosocial and family support, and a one‑stop centre for documentation, legal aid, and job matching.
By bridging labour‑sending and receiving cities through cross‑corridor collaboration—exemplified by the Dubai–Quezon City partnership—local governments are working to minimise information gaps, strengthen protection, and uphold rights at each stage of the migration journey. From psychosocial care and legal redress to livelihood training and green job inclusion, LRG‑led initiatives showcased how labour mobility policies and local care systems can reinforce one another to build inclusive territories where migrants are recognised as essential to thriving societies.
City spotlights: practices from across regions
In interactive breakout groups, participants shared local practices and challenges, highlighting both sending and destination perspectives. Cities such as Campillos and Córdoba (Spain and Argentina) described neighbourhood‑based hubs that combine legal and employment advice, language classes, cultural activities, and coordination tables with UN agencies, consulates, and civil society to expand regularisation support and recognition of qualifications.
Dhankuta Municipality in Nepal, a labour‑sending city, presented its Foreign Employment and Reintegration Policy, Migrant Resource Centre, and mobile counselling efforts that provide information, legal aid, psychosocial care, and small‑business grants for returning migrants, with particular attention to women and trafficking survivors. Nairobi City County in Kenya shared how it ensures access to urban services regardless of status, promotes green jobs and creative industries in informal settlements, and is rolling out a Refugee Integration and Community Building Strategy (2025–2030) with formal referral avenues and multi‑stakeholder forums.
Across the board, cities reported coordinating with national ministries, UN agencies (including IOM, UNHCR, and ILO), consulates, civil society organisations, and migrant‑led groups through steering committees, memoranda of understanding, and referral networks. Common challenges included limited funding for psychosocial care, persistent stigma around mental health, documentation delays, skills mismatches, and the invisibility of workers in the informal sector, particularly domestic workers with limited access to justice.
Avenues for collaboration and next steps
Building on these exchanges, participants identified several avenues to deepen city‑to‑city and cross‑corridor collaboration. Suggestions included co‑developing joint pre‑departure and post‑arrival orientation packages between sending and receiving cities, creating city‑pairing programmes, hosting further virtual peer learning on reintegration and inclusive green jobs, and developing joint funding proposals for donor agencies.
The recommendations emerging from the session point to actions for local governments—such as expanding psychosocial services, improving information channels and redress mechanisms, and using social media to share verified guidance—as well as roles for national governments, city networks, and international partners in facilitating city engagement, aligning legal frameworks with international standards, and channelling more direct funding to local initiatives on labour migration. The insights will inform upcoming research, policy dialogues, and advocacy towards global fora, including the 2026 International Migration Review Forum (IMRF) in New York and UCLG’s Policy Dialogues and World Congress in Tangiers.