The Pacific Immigration Directors’ Conference (PIDC)

1996 Regional consultative process (region covered: Pacific)

Objectives:

The Pacific Immigration Directors’ Conference (PIDC) is a forum for official immigration agencies of the Pacific Region, enabling the Heads of the Participating States’ immigration agencies to discuss issues of mutual interest and to foster multilateral co-operation to strengthen the members' territorial borders and the integrity of their entry systems with the ultimate goal to build and enhance quality immigration and border management practices across the Pacific region.

Membership is open to all official government immigration agencies within Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia and includes Australia and New Zealand. Immigration departments that have signed the PIDC Memorandum of Understanding to become members include: Australia, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Kiribati, Republic of Marshall Islands, Nauru, New Zealand, New Caledonia, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Wallis and Futuna.

PIDC vision is: Border integrity across the Pacific through regional cooperation, facilitating seamless and efficient people movement that contributes to economic growth.”

PIDC strategic objectives are:

• To improve the management of international people movements;
• To strengthen border management and security; and
• To work together to build capacity to deliver immigration services.

Current Thematic Focus

Specific areas of discussion include:

• Asylum and refugees
• Border management
• Combatting migrant smuggling
• Counter-trafficking
• Labour migration
• Migration data
• Migration policy and legislation

Chairing Country

Current Chair: Tuvalu
Past Chairs: Cook Islands, Fiji, New Zealand, the Marshall Islands

PIDC Board

PIDC Board, comprising eight members, including a dedicated representative of the smaller Pacific Island States, is elected annually at the Annual Conference for a one-year term. The PIDC Board is a permanent subsidiary body of the PIDC and is mandated through the PIDC Constitution to act on behalf of the PIDC to provide governance oversight of the day-to-day operational activity of the PIDC Secretariat, other PIDC Subsidiary Bodies and Sub-committees.

The Board meets three times per year (in February, November and a day immediately prior to the Annual Conference) to monitor the implementation of the PIDC annual work plan.

The 2017-2018 Board is comprised of New Zealand (as 2017 Chair of the PIDC), Fiji (as Vice-Chair incoming), Republic of the Marshall Islands (Vice-Chair outgoing), Australia, Federated States of Micronesia (for Micronesia), Papua New Guinea (Melanesia), Kiribati (for the Small Island States) and Tonga (for Polynesia).

Secretariat

PIDC Secretariat is based in Apia, Samoa and is responsible for progressing PIDC’s work between Annual Conferences and meeting objectives under the PIDC 3-year Strategic Plan. PIDC operates as a legal entity status in Samoa and has been provided diplomatic privileges under its headquarters agreement with the Samoan Government.

Members

19 Member States and territories

•  Australia
• Cook Islands
• Micronesia
• Fiji
• French Polynesia
• Kiribati
• Marshall Islands
• Nauru
• New Zealand
• New Caledonia
• Niue
• Palau
• Papua New Guinea
• Samoa
• Solomon Islands
• Tonga
• Tuvalu
• Vanuatu
• Wallis and Futuna Islands

Note: Founding Members: Australia, the Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, the Republic of Marshall Islands, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Western Samoa .

Observers

2 Observer States

• Canada (through Canadian Border Servic es (CBS) and Canada Immigration and Citizenship)
• USA (through US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE))  

Observer Organizations (7 Organizations)

• African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Intra-Migration Facility
• International Air Transport Association (IATA)
• International Organization for Migration (IOM)
• Pacific Islands Chiefs of Police (PICP)
• Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat ( PIFS)
• United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
• United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)

Meetings

The Annual Pacific Immigration Directors’ Conference takes place from May to June period each year.

• June 4-6, 2019, Rarotonga, Cook Islands , Pacific Immigration Development Community Regular Annual Conference
• June 26-28, 2018 Nadi, Fiji, 21st Pacific Immigration Directors Annual Conference “Climate Change and Migration”
• June 25, 2018, Fiji, PIDC Board Meeting
• March 6-9, 2018, Apia, Samoa , Second Executive Leadership and Management Training “Strengthening Immigration Leadership in the Pacific”
• June 20-23, 2017, Apia, Samoa, 20th Annual Pacific Immigration Directors Conference “Our Waka: Advancing Approaches to Regional Migration Challenges for a Safe and Prosperous Pacific ”
• June 19, 2017, Apia, Samoa, PIDC Board Meeting
• February 27, 2017, Palau, PIDC Board Meeting
• July 19-21, 2016, Majuro, Republic of the Marshall Islands, 19th Pacific Immigration Directors' Conference (PIDC) “New Beginning and Growth” [ Communiqué ]
• July 28-30, 2015, Apia, Samoa, 18th PIDC “Our Voyage towards Tomorrow”
• April 29 - May 01, 2014, Kokopo, Papua New Guinea, 17th Pacific Immigration Directors' Conference (PIDC) “Economic Growth and National Development through Skilled Entry Programs” [ Press release ]
• November 21 - 23, 2012, Rarotonga, Cook Islands, 16th Pacific Immigration Directors' Conference (PIDC) “Securing Pacific Oceanic Gateways through Effective Use of Information” [ Communiqué ]
• October 30 - November 02, 2011, Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia, 15th Pacific Immigration Directors' Conference (PIDC) “Good Governance, Strong Laws, Secure Borders” [ Release ]
• October 19-20, 2010, Port Vila, Vanuatu, 14th PIDC “Consolidating PIDC status as a valuable entity” [ Release ]
• October 6 -8, 2009, Sydney, Australia, 13th IPDC “Focus on the Future” [ Release ]
• September 16-18, 2008, Brisbane, Australia, 12th IPDC [ Release ]
• August 15-17, 2007, Samoa, 11th PIDC
• October 17 - 19, 2006, Wellington, New Zealand, 10th PIDC [ Communiqué ]
• August 30 - September 01, 2005, Nadi, the Republic of Fiji, 9th PIDC [Communiqué ]
• September 8-10, 2004, Republic of Palau, 8th PIDC [ Communiqué ]
• September 10-12, 2003, Nuku'alofa, Kingdom of Tonga, 7th PIDC [ Communiqué ]
• September 17 -19, 2002, Niue, 6th PIDC [ Communiqué ]
• November 13-15, 2001, Rarotonga, Cook Islands, 5th PIDC [ Communiqué ]
• October 30 - November 1, 2000, Norfolk Island, 4th PIDC
• December 6-8, 1999, Norfolk Island, 3rd PIDC [ Communiqué]
• April 1997, Samoa, 2nd PIDC
• October 28-30, 1996, Suva, Fiji, 1st PIDC Conference

 

Documents

• PIDC Memorandum of Understanding
• PIDC Headquarters Agreement with the Samoan Government (2016)
• The Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement (PICTA) and the Temporary Movement of Natural Persons (TMNP) scheme: Update (March 2010)
• Background to the Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement (PICTA) and the Temporary Movement of Natural Persons (TMNP) scheme
• Understanding People Smuggling and Human Trafficking (No.2/2010)
• Disaster response and the role of Immigration (No.1/2010)
• PIDC Factsheets 2015 | 2007
• International and regional instruments relevant to immigration practice and legislation (June 2011)
• Immigration legislation of PIDC Member States

Contact Information

Pacific Immigration Directors Conference Secretariat
Level 3, Development Bank of Samoa Building
PO Box 1881, Apia, Samoa
Phone: (685) 29107
Email: info@pidcsec.org

Website
http://www.pidcsec.org