Between 1 and 2 February 2024, Mekong Migration Network (MMN) organised a country visit to Phnom Penh, Cambodia, attended by representatives from the Center for Development and Integration (CDI), Vietnam; Legal Support for Children and Women (LSCW), Cambodia; Kumusta Ka, Japan; and the MMN Secretariat. A delegate from the Future Light Centre (FLC), Myanmar, also joined a session of the visit online.

As the second of a series of three country visits, the trip provided participants with the opportunity to understand the recruitment processes in Cambodia and identify good practices; mutually learn about the initiatives of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in Mekong countries of origin and Japan and discuss joint strategies to address common challenges; and build contact between CSOs in Mekong countries of origin and Japan to better enhance the assistance provided to migrant workers throughout the different stages of migration.

As part of the visit, MMN delegates visited a recruitment agency in Phnom Penh, Axel Asia Human Resources Co., Ltd., along with the Executive Director from the Association of Cambodian Recruitment Agencies (ACRA). During the visit, MMN learnt about the recruitment agency’s initiatives to disseminate information at the pre-departure stage of migration, the way it cooperates with stakeholders in Japan and the assistance provided to overseas migrant workers. The group also exchanged ideas with ACRA about its pilot Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) mechanism to assess recruitment agencies’ compliance with the voluntary Code of Conduct (COC) and discussed the challenges of implementing the zero recruitment fee model, whereby employers would be made responsible for incurring all recruitment fees.

On the second day of the visit, participants from different countries introduced their respective organisations and explained their initiatives to support migrant workers. The meeting was a unique opportunity for CSOs in Mekong countries of origin to inform Japanese CSOs about the challenges migrant workers faced in the pre-departure and returning stages of migration, and to understand what role they can play in supporting the work of migrant supporting organisations in Japan. The following discussion points were highlighted during the meeting:

• CSOs in Japan and Mekong countries of origin need to develop a stronger network to more effectively address cases that entail a cross-border nature.
• CSOs in Cambodia, Vietnam and Myanmar face unique challenges in providing support to migrant workers. While there are several instances in which CSOs in Cambodia have been able to collaborate with government ministries, business associations and other stakeholders to promote the rights of migrant workers, in Vietnam, there are far fewer CSOs focusing on international migration and they are not often engaged by government authorities. In Myanmar, the unfolding political conflict and the deterioration of the rule of law have greatly restricted the space in which CSOs can operate.
• Recruitment agencies in Cambodia appear to have a weak understanding of migrant workers’ reproductive and maternity rights, and information on these topics is often only delivered during government-run Pre-Departure Orientation (PDO) that only lasts for half a day.
• A first step to realising the zero recruitment fee model is to require recruitment agencies to make recruitment fees and other related costs transparent, such that all stakeholders are aware of the costs involved in the migration to Japan.