ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The United Kingdom is seeking to curb illegal migration from the Kurdistan Region by supporting local economic development and countering misleading narratives spread by human trafficking networks, the British Consul General said on Sunday.
“I understand that people have a legitimate desire to live a very good life, to have a good economy, [and] to have a good social network around them,” Andrew Bizely told Rudaw.
Bizely made the remarks while inaugurating the Raparin Regional Development Agency, a UK-funded center aimed at promoting vocational training and education in Ranya, northeast of Sulaimani province.
The British diplomat said the agency was intended to help create opportunities that would encourage people to remain in the area.
“The idea of this agency is to create the conditions in which it is not even a choice that they have to make” but “they choose to be here” because the economy is flourishing and the situation is thriving.
“We hope this is just the start of something very special for this area,” Bizely added.
For his part, KRG Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani described the opening of the center as “an important step toward a more balanced and inclusive economy.”
“Every district has its own strengths, opportunities, and potential to attract investment, create jobs, and drive development,” Talabani said on X, adding that similar initiatives could be replicated “across the Kurdistan Region.”
The initiative comes as Ranya remains one of the areas most affected by migration. In 2025 alone, around 6,500 people left the Kurdistan Region, with 11 losing their lives during the journey, according to the Association of Returned Refugees, a local monitoring group.
Ranya has also been identified as a key hub for human smuggling networks.
“They're telling stories about journeys being safe, about the life that you get when you're in the UK and the reality is very different,” Bizely warned, referring to smugglers. “It's a very dangerous journey and it leaves you really open to exploitation and when people get to the UK, it's not the life that they're expecting.”
To counter such narratives, the British Consul General said the UK, alongside French counterparts, recently trained educators and religious leaders to “put that message out there” through digital and community outreach efforts.
“We're also doing broader work including in the law enforcement space that we have good partners here. Ultimately to try and make communities safer here,” he added.