IOM DEPUTY DIRECTOR GENERAL ELECTED FOR A SECOND TERM

Mrs. Ndiaye said she intends to focus her future efforts as IOM Deputy Director General on continuing to raise awareness on the positive aspects of migration. “This calls for strategies that aim at poverty reduction. As part of this goal, IOM is already helping migrants make their skills available to further the development of their countries of origin. We must also encourage migrants to invest some of their remittances into public and private projects that generate employment.”

Mrs. Ndiaye, who stood unopposed, took office as Deputy Director General of IOM in September 1999.

Reflecting on her work of the past five years, Mrs. Ndiaye said, “One of my highest priorities has been to promote migration issues on international agendas. Another of my priorities has been to put greater emphasis on IOM projects that link migration and development and take account of the positive role of diasporas. This is relevant to all developing and transition countries in Africa, Latin America and Asia.”

Mrs. Ndiaye was born in Bignona, Senegal, on 6 November 1946. After secondary studies in France, she undertook medical studies first at Dakar University, then at Bordeaux and Paris VII (Garancière). She was one of the first African women to pass the concours de l'agrégation in France (highest competitive examination for teachers), specializing in odontology and stomatology. She then became Head of the Department of Odontology and Stomatology at the Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar.

In 1988, Mrs. Ndiaye was appointed Minister for Social Development. On behalf of the Senegalese Government, she coordinated humanitarian activities during the crisis between Senegal and Mauritania in 1989. As the supervising minister, Mrs. Ndiaye devised and implemented practical solutions to assist both Senegalese and Mauritanian migrants displaced by the conflict.

She has also been responsible for dealing with population movements arising from the situation in Casamance, where there has been a conflict for over 15 years. From 1990 to 1995, Mrs. Ndiaye was Minister for Women’s, Children’s and Family Affairs. Thereafter, and until her appointment as Deputy Director-General of IOM, she resumed her numerous activities at the Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar, where she was highly instrumental in reforming tertiary education in Senegal.