UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed said Friday that UN member states have agreed an all-encompassing global compact to better manage international migration, which demonstrates the potential of multilateralism.

Speaking at the final round of negotiations at UN headquarters in New York on a global compact for safe, orderly and regular migration, Mohammed drew attention to the profound issues that migration raises, such as sovereignty and human rights; around what constitutes voluntary movement; the relationship between development and mobility; and how to support social cohesion.

However, she said that "this compact demonstrates the potential of multilateralism: our ability to come together on issues that demand global collaboration, however complicated and contentious they may be."

"The large mixed flows of refugees and migrants that we continue to witness, and the tens of thousands of preventable deaths of migrants in transit, show that our collective response is woefully inadequate," she said.

"However, today's agreement will strengthen faith in our ability to develop cooperative approaches to global challenges," she noted.

"The compact's aim is not to stop migration, but to manage it as a historic and ongoing reality, and to support the safe, orderly and regular movement of people," she said.

"It reinforces the universality of our human rights, whoever and wherever we are. And it will contribute to implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, our shared roadmap for a safe, prosperous future on a healthy planet," the deputy UN chief added.

"There is nothing stopping us in the pursuit of better, more comprehensive migration data as a basis on which to develop stronger, evidence-based policies. Much work, indeed, is already getting going in this regard," she said.

The UN General Assembly decided to develop the global compact when it adopted the New York Declaration at the Summit for Refugees and Migrants in September 2016. The compact will be the first intergovernmentally negotiated agreement, prepared under the auspices of the United Nations, to cover all dimensions of international migration in a holistic and comprehensive manner.