Patrick Taran

Patrick A. Taran is President of Global Migration Policy Associates, an international expert body conducting research, policy development, advisory services and training worldwide.  He counts 40 years full-time professional experience in international migration, refugee resettlement, immigrant integration, labour migration and human rights work at local, national and global levels.

He is Senior Fellow at the Global Migration Center, Graduate Institute for International and Development Studies of Geneva and Visiting Professor at the Geneva School of Diplomacy.

As Senior Migration Specialist at the International Labour Office—ILO 2000-2011, he was responsible for cooperation and advisory services in Africa, Central Asia and Europe and activity on non-discrimination, migrant integration, and human rights of migrants worldwide.  

He was Secretary for Migration at the World Council of Churches 1990 to 1998. He co-founded in 1994 and later directed Migrants Rights International (MRI) and convened in 1998 the Steering Committee for the Global Campaign on the migrants rights conventions, contributing to entry into force of the International Convention on the rights of migrant workers (ICRMW).  He established and directed the South American Refugee (resettlement) Program in Seattle, USA from 1976 to 1980 and subsequently held research, local project support and Washington Representative posts at the Immigration and Refugee Program of the National Council of Churches USA from 1980 to 1990.  

His graduated from Friends World College-State University of New York with double major in Social Work and Latin American Studies. 

Publications include: IPU-ILO-OHCHR Parliamentarians Handbook on Migration, Human Rights and Governance, 2015 (co-author);  Youth and Migration; Challenges and Opportunities UNICEF/Global Migration Group, 2014 (Co-editor, contributing author);  Strengthening Migration Governance. ILO-OSCE, 2009 (Contributing editor); International Migration, Social Cohesion and Development: An Integrated Approach. Council of Europe, 2009 (Lead writer, coordinating editor); Handbook on Establishing Effective Labour Migration Policies; Mediterranean edition OSCE-IOM-ILO, 2008 (Contributing editor).  Also more than 200 published papers, articles, book chapters and speeches.