E.g., 04/24/2024
E.g., 04/24/2024
Middle East & North Africa

Middle East & North Africa

The Middle East and North Africa span both poles of migration: as countries of migrant destination, particularly in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, and as countries of migrant origin. The region has a large supply of young, active workers, with millions working elsewhere in the region or in Europe. The research here focuses on labor and humanitarian migration to and from the region, including the policies and regulations that govern such migration, protection and integration issues for the region's refugees, diaspora engagement, migration cooperation and reintegration agreements with European governments, and more.

Migrant workers on a farm in Jordan
Reports

Diverging Paths: The Impacts of COVID-19 on Migration in the Middle East and North Africa

The COVID-19 pandemic’s impacts on mobility in the Middle East and North Africa were immediate and wide-reaching. These include the world’s largest and most sustained repatriation efforts for stranded migrants, halted and reversed irregular journeys, and a reckoning with some countries’ reliance on foreign labor. This report examines how these impacts varied across countries in this highly diverse region, as well as the uneven recovery.

Paintings of the Algerian and Moroccan flags on a brick wall
Articles

Tense Neighbors, Algeria and Morocco Have Divergent Migration Histories

Algeria and Morocco sit along a crucial migration corridor between Africa and Europe and have often been defined by their rivalry. Although both have been reluctant to welcome large numbers of sub-Saharan African migrants, their motivations have been different. And historically, their approaches to emigration have been a study in contrasts. This article explores the factors driving migration policy in these two countries.

Recent Activity

Cover image for Lessons from COVID-19
Policy Briefs
March 2024
Lessons from COVID-19: Managing Borders in the Next Global Public-Health Crisis
By  Meghan Benton and Lawrence Huang
Cover image for Diverging Paths
Reports
March 2024
Diverging Paths: The Impacts of COVID-19 on Migration in the Middle East and North Africa
By  Samuel Davidoff-Gore
Afghan refugees in Iran's Semnan refugee settlement.
Articles
March 6, 2024
Iran Faces Dwindling Water and Escalating Climate Pressures, Aggravating Displacement Threats
By Javid Rostami and Arash Asad Paski
Cover image for Expanding Protection Options?
Reports
January 2024
Expanding Protection Options? Flexible Approaches to Status for Displaced Syrians, Venezuelans, and Ukrainians
By  Andrew Selee, Susan Fratzke, Samuel Davidoff-Gore and Luisa Feline Freier
Cover image for Consolidating Gains
Policy Briefs
December 2023
Consolidating Gains: Lessons and Priorities for Promoting Fair and Ethical Recruitment
By  Kate Hooper
A woman and child walk in the Somali region of Ethiopia.
Articles
November 16, 2023
Climate Migration 101: An Explainer
By Lawrence Huang
A Syrian woman in Turkey
Articles
November 1, 2023
The World’s Leading Refugee Host, Turkey Has a Complex Migration History
By Ayhan Kaya
Venezuelan migrants charge their phones and other devices at a power point in Boa Vista, Brazil.
Articles
July 27, 2023
Technology Can Be Transformative for Refugees, but It Can Also Hold Them Back
By Amanda Alencar

Pages

Cover image for Lessons from COVID-19
Policy Briefs
March 2024
Lessons from COVID-19: Managing Borders in the Next Global Public-Health Crisis
By  Meghan Benton and Lawrence Huang
Cover image for Diverging Paths
Reports
March 2024
Diverging Paths: The Impacts of COVID-19 on Migration in the Middle East and North Africa
By  Samuel Davidoff-Gore
Cover image for Expanding Protection Options?
Reports
January 2024
Expanding Protection Options? Flexible Approaches to Status for Displaced Syrians, Venezuelans, and Ukrainians
By  Andrew Selee, Susan Fratzke, Samuel Davidoff-Gore and Luisa Feline Freier
Cover image for Consolidating Gains
Policy Briefs
December 2023
Consolidating Gains: Lessons and Priorities for Promoting Fair and Ethical Recruitment
By  Kate Hooper
Cover image for Building Meaningful Refugee Participation
Reports
June 2023
Building Meaningful Refugee Participation into Protection Policymaking
By  Uwezo Ramazani
Cover image for External Processing report
Reports
February 2023
External Processing: A Tool to Expand Protection or Further Restrict Territorial Asylum?
By  Pauline Endres de Oliveira and Nikolas Feith Tan
Cover image for Reassessing Recruitment Costs
Policy Briefs
November 2022
Reassessing Recruitment Costs in a Changing World of Labor Migration
By  Kate Hooper
Cover image for Financing Responses to Climate Migration
Reports
November 2022
Financing Responses to Climate Migration: The Unique Role of Multilateral Development Banks
By  Lawrence Huang, Ravenna Sohst and Camille Le Coz

Pages

Afghan refugees in Iran's Semnan refugee settlement.
Feature
March 6, 2024
Iran Faces Dwindling Water and Escalating Climate Pressures, Aggravating Displacement Threats

Floods, heatwaves, and other extreme weather events have displaced hundreds of thousands of people in Iran, with repercussions for residents including the 3.4 million refugees and other forced migrants, who are restricted to climate-affected areas. Environmental challenges may also be pushing some people to move internationally. This article offers a rare look at the climate and migration dynamics in Iran.

A woman and child walk in the Somali region of Ethiopia.
Feature
November 16, 2023
Climate Migration 101: An Explainer

Is climate change a major driver of migration and displacement? From where are people leaving, and where are they going? This informative primer, a Climate Migration 101 of sorts, provides answers to basic questions about climate change and migration, starting with how and where climate change triggers human movement.

A Syrian woman in Turkey
Profile
November 1, 2023
The World’s Leading Refugee Host, Turkey Has a Complex Migration History

Turkey is home to the world’s largest refugee population, a fact that has been a source of pride, a geopolitical tool, and a logistical challenge. This article shows how the millions of Syrians who have arrived since 2011 comprise just one aspect of Turkey’s rich and complex migration history. The country has been a significant host, a transit point for individuals heading to Europe, and a source of migrant laborers.

Venezuelan migrants charge their phones and other devices at a power point in Boa Vista, Brazil.
Feature
July 27, 2023
Technology Can Be Transformative for Refugees, but It Can Also Hold Them Back

While smartphones and other technologies can assist decision-making, they do not always improve migrants’ journeys or lives. Forcibly displaced populations can face barriers in the form of limited internet access and low levels of digital literacy. Digital tools may also expose them to government surveillance and raise anxiety about social relations with loved ones. This article underscores refugees' complex relationships with technology.

Paintings of the Algerian and Moroccan flags on a brick wall
Feature
May 18, 2023
Tense Neighbors, Algeria and Morocco Have Divergent Migration Histories

Algeria and Morocco sit along a crucial migration corridor between Africa and Europe and have often been defined by their rivalry. Although both have been reluctant to welcome large numbers of sub-Saharan African migrants, their motivations have been different. And historically, their approaches to emigration have been a study in contrasts. This article explores the factors driving migration policy in these two countries.

Pages

archive >
ExternalProcessing EU
Commentaries
June 2018
Europe Pushes to Outsource Asylum, Again
By  Elizabeth Collett and Susan Fratzke
_TunisiaCamp
Commentaries
February 2017
New EU Partnerships in North Africa: Potential to Backfire?
By  Elizabeth Collett
Boat SteveEvans Flickr
Commentaries
March 2016
The Paradox of the EU-Turkey Refugee Deal
By  Elizabeth Collett
_SyrianRefugeeCamp
Commentaries
October 2015
The U.S. Record Shows Refugees Are Not a Threat
By  Kathleen Newland
_LampedusaMigrants
Commentaries
October 2013
The Lampedusa Tragedy Prompts the Question: Does the UN Have Any Impact on the World’s Migrants?
By  Kathleen Newland
Expert Q&A, Audio
July 12, 2023

Climate Migration 101

Climate migration sounds simple. It is not. MPI’s Lawrence Huang answers some of the most common questions around one of the least understood dynamics in human movement.

Evacuees prepare to board a C-17 Globemaster III at Hamid Karzai International Airport, Afghanistan, Aug. 18, 2021
Video, Audio
August 10, 2022

One Year On: The Situation for At-Risk Afghans in Afghanistan and Abroad

Marking the one-year withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan and the fall of Kabul to the Taliban, this webinar reflects on the humanitarian and development challenges in Afghanistan and for neighbors, the difficult choices facing aid donors, and what needs to be done to ensure at-risk Afghans can reach safety.

Displaced Ukrainians who have just crossed the Medyka border in Poland getting assistance from IOM
Video, Audio
May 4, 2022

Public Narratives on Refugees: Sustaining Solidarity in Times of Crisis

Experts consider what is known about public opinion and narratives on refugees, looking at the Ukrainian and Syrian crises, and how post-crisis solidarity can be harnessed towards sustainable protection.  

Changing Climate Changing Migration podcast tile episode 15
Expert Q&A, Audio
December 10, 2021

When Climate Change Comes to Refugee Settings

For this episode of Changing Climate, Changing Migration, we speak with Joan Rosenhauer, the executive director of Jesuit Refugee Service/USA, about how natural disasters and other environmental harms affect her organization’s work and its faith-based mission.

CCCM episode 13 tile
Expert Q&A, Audio
October 12, 2021

Impacts of Extreme Heat: Global Warming and Migration

Global warming and extreme heat are behind many of the phenomena linked to climate change. Hotter weather also has an impact on migration and on migrants, ranging from destinations such as the Middle East to parts of the United States. In recent years, there has been more attention paid to cases of migrant workers dying from the heat.

Pages

Recent Activity

Articles
August 1, 2019

African Countries Relax Short-Term Visa Policies for Chinese in Sign of Increased Openness to China

China has been Africa’s largest trading partner since 2009, and as commerce and investment have increased, so have flows of people in both directions. With an estimated 1 million to 2 million Chinese migrants across Africa, some countries have relaxed their short-term visa requirements in hopes of facilitating cultural and business exchanges. High levels of Chinese investment do not, however, correlate with more liberal visa policies, as this article explores.

Articles
July 2, 2019

A Growing Destination for Sub-Saharan Africans, Morocco Wrestles with Immigrant Integration

Long a country of emigration and a springboard for migrants aiming to reach Europe, Morocco has emerged as a destination for many sub-Saharan Africans. As more migrants remain in Morocco, the kingdom has implemented policies to aid with integration. But challenges remain, with most of the estimated 700,000 sub-Saharan Africans living in precarious conditions and irregular status despite some legalization programs.

Articles
April 3, 2019

Foreign Fighters: Will Revoking Citizenship Mitigate the Threat?

Even with the collapse of the Islamic State's "caliphate," thousands of Western foreign fighters are estimated to remain in the Middle East. Deciding how to handle the return of the radicalized—and their dependents—is no easy issue. Some countries seek to revoke their citizenship. Yet citizenship revocation has unclear impact and raises deep questions about the limits of a state’s responsibility to its citizens, as this article explores.

Articles
February 21, 2019

A Fragile Situation: Will the Syrian Refugee Swell Push Lebanon Over the Edge?

Lebanon is home to more refugees per capita than any other country. The arrival of approximately 1 million refugees from neighboring Syria has created tensions not only with the native population, but also with long-established Palestinian refugee communities in Lebanon. A lack of integration and resources, plus a complex domestic context, suggest further hardship may lie ahead for recent and earlier-arrived refugees alike.

Policy Briefs
February 2019

Strengthening Refugee Protection in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

Development actors are well positioned to help close the gap in refugee protection system capacity that exists between high-income countries and those that have fewer resources. With 85 percent of the world's refugees in low- or middle-income countries that lack the means to support them fully, strengthening protection systems would benefit from new thinking and tapping the expertise of well-placed actors to assure a more comprehensive approach.

Articles
February 6, 2019

On the Move in a War Zone: Mixed Migration Flows to and through Yemen

War and impending famine in Yemen have captured significant attention. Yet often overlooked is the country’s role as the epicenter of one of the world’s busiest mixed migration routes, linking Africa, Asia, and Europe. This article examines the migration pathways to and through the country, push and pull factors, and the impact of civil war on human movement.

Articles
December 14, 2018

Intensifying Focus on Migrant Returns Takes a More Global Stage

Questions of how, when, and under what conditions migrants and asylum seekers can be returned to their origin countries have featured prominently in international discussions of migration in 2018. Crucially, so too has an increased interest on the part of both destination and origin countries in making reintegration assistance more effective to help ensure that return is sustainable.

Articles
November 15, 2018

The Emerging Crisis: Is Famine Returning as a Major Driver of Migration?

Despite long study of famine, there is a remarkable lack of research about the linkages between mass starvation and migration. Among the unanswered questions: Does migration mitigate starvation or worsen it? With famines returning, most notably in war-torn Yemen, after a period of decline, the need for knowledge is essential. This article examines the causes and migration patterns of great famines from the 19th century onward.

Pages