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

Chinese tourists
Articles
August 1, 2019
African Countries Relax Short-Term Visa Policies for Chinese in Sign of Increased Openness to China
By Loksan Harley
CongoleseMigrants
Articles
July 2, 2019
A Growing Destination for Sub-Saharan Africans, Morocco Wrestles with Immigrant Integration
By Driss El Ghazouani
Three men pose with guns
Articles
April 3, 2019
Foreign Fighters: Will Revoking Citizenship Mitigate the Threat?
By Meghan Benton and Natalia Banulescu-Bogdan
Syrian refugees in Lebanon
Articles
February 21, 2019
A Fragile Situation: Will the Syrian Refugee Swell Push Lebanon Over the Edge?
By Dina Eldawy
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Policy Briefs
February 2019
Strengthening Refugee Protection in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
By  Susan Fratzke and Camille Le Coz
Somali migrants disembarking.
Articles
February 6, 2019
On the Move in a War Zone: Mixed Migration Flows to and through Yemen
By Henry Wilson-Smith
Migrants returning to Ethiopia
Articles
December 14, 2018
Intensifying Focus on Migrant Returns Takes a More Global Stage
By Lauren Shaw
Famine Memorial in Dublin
Articles
November 15, 2018
The Emerging Crisis: Is Famine Returning as a Major Driver of Migration?
By Batul Sadliwala and Alex de Waal

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Reports
September 2010
Diaspora Philanthropy: Private Giving and Public Policy
By  Kathleen Newland, Aaron Terrazas and Roberto Munster
cover heritagetourism
Reports
September 2010
Heritage Tourism and Nostalgia Trade: A Diaspora Niche in the Development Landscape
By  Kathleen Newland and Carylanna Taylor
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Reports
August 2010
Diaspora Investment in Developing and Emerging Country Capital Markets: Patterns and Prospects
By  Aaron Terrazas
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Reports
August 2010
Connected through Service: Diaspora Volunteers and Global Development
By  Aaron Terrazas
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Reports
June 2010
Migration's Middlemen: Regulating Recruitment Agencies in the Philippines-United Arab Emirates Corridor
By  Dovelyn Rannveig Mendoza
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Books
September 2009
Closing the Distance: How Governments Strengthen Ties with Their Diasporas
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Reports
September 2009
Migration and the Global Recession
By  Michael Fix, Demetrios G. Papademetriou, Jeanne Batalova, Aaron Terrazas, Serena Yi-Ying Lin and Michelle Mittelstadt
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Reports
November 2008
Emerging Demographic Patterns across the Mediterranean and their Implications for Migration through 2030
By  Philippe Fargues

Pages

EgyptianWoman BenPiven Flickr
Spotlight
January 10, 2018
Middle Eastern and North African Immigrants in the United States

In 2016, nearly 1.2 million immigrants from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region lived in the United States. MENA immigration has picked up in recent decades, owing to war and worsening economic prospects. This article offers the latest data on the MENA population in the United States, which is more likely to come via humanitarian routes and less likely via family reunification than the foreign-born population overall.

 

Migrants on a boat
Top Ten
December 18, 2017
European Leaders Pursue Migration Deals with North African Countries, Sparking Concerns about Human Costs

European leaders in 2017 pursued migration partnerships with North African countries, seeking to stem maritime arrivals across the Mediterranean. Italy struck a deal with Libya to provide support in cracking down on illegal migration and smugglers, while Germany signed cooperation agreements with Egypt and Tunisia. Meanwhile, widespread reports of migrant abuse in Libya are prompting questions about the limitations and human costs of these partnerships.

South Sudanese refugee girl
Top Ten
December 14, 2017
As Displacement Becomes Long-Term, Refugee Hosts Grapple with New Normal

Millions of displaced people were unable to return home in 2017, and countless others found themselves newly displaced. Targeted violence in Myanmar caused more than 624,000 Rohingya to flee to Bangladesh, and conflict in South Sudan drove at least 668,000 abroad. Some first-asylum countries, such as Uganda and Turkey, were largely accommodating, while others, such as Jordan and Lebanon, pressured refugees to leave.

A Syrian refugee woman uses a special e-card to purchase food at a grocery store in Turkey.
Feature
August 9, 2017
Thinking Outside the Camp: Syrian Refugees in Istanbul

Turkey has been on the frontlines of the Syrian refugee crisis from the beginning. The vast majority of Turkey's nearly 3.2 million Syrian asylum seekers live in cities, putting pressure on the limited resources and legal authority of local governments to serve them. This article examines Istanbul's creative approaches to meeting the needs of this vulnerable population while balancing the concerns of local citizens.

SyriansDallas CNeukum IRC
Spotlight
January 12, 2017
Syrian Refugees in the United States

More than 18,000 Syrian refugees have been resettled in the United States since civil war broke out in Syria in 2011. Nearly half of Syrian refugees are under age 14, and this population is more dispersed geographically across the country than the overall Syrian immigrant population. This article offers a demographic profile of Syrian refugees, including age, gender, language, and religion, as well as top state and city destinations.

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Recent Activity

Video, Audio
May 20, 2014

Syrians on the Edge: The Status of Refugees in Neighboring Countries

A discussion with findings from an ORSAM report that evaluates the effect of the Syrian refugee crisis on Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq, as well as on the more than 3 million Syrians who have fled their homeland to become refugees in neighboring countries. The discussion focused on the social and economic impact of the refugees in Turkey, with remarks by the Director General of Turkey's state-run relief agency, AFAD.

Articles
April 8, 2014

Maroc: Préparer le Terrain pour Devenir un Pays de Transition Migratoire?

Sous l’effet du nombre croissant de migrants sur son sol, la société marocaine se retrouve confrontée à un ensemble totalement nouveau de questions sociales et juridiques qui sont typiques des pays d’immigration. Face à cette évolution, les autorités marocaines ont annoncé une nouvelle politique migratoire en 2013, que ce profil pays se propose d’analyser.

Articles
April 9, 2014

Global Civil Society in Qatar and the Gulf Cooperation Council: Emerging Dilemmas and Opportunities

As Qatar races to build its infrastructure for the 2022 World Cup, international civil-society actors increasingly are highlighting the harsh conditions under which temporary labor migrants often work in Qatar and other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. This article examines the emerging roles, challenges, and opportunities that civil-society groups face in the region; it also analyzes the prevailing legal and political structures where civil society operates in the Gulf.

Articles
March 19, 2014

Morocco: Setting the Stage for Becoming a Migration Transition Country?

Morocco has evolved into one of the world’s leading emigration countries. European immigration restrictions did not stop migration, but rather pushed Moroccan migrants into permanent settlement, prompting large-scale family reunification. Morocco is also becoming a destination country, and the growing presence of immigrants confronts Moroccan society with an entirely new set of social and legal issues typical for immigration countries, as this country profile explores.

Articles
December 18, 2013

The Escalating Syrian Refugee Crisis Challenges the International Community's Ability to Respond

With more than 2.2 million Syrians who have already sought refuge abroad and more than 4 million others displaced internally, the challenges that the international community are facing from the Syrian humanitarian crisis continue to mount.

Articles
December 10, 2013

Qatar's Treatment of Migrant Workers Is Under the Spotlight Ahead of 2022 FIFA World Cup

Qatar's dependence on foreign workers is expected to intensify over the coming decade as it steps up its preparations to host the World Cup in 2022. Migrant workers already dominate Qatar's labor force, comprising 94 percent of all workers and 86 percent of the country's total population of nearly 2 million — the world's highest ratio of migrants to citizens.

Video, Audio
November 22, 2013

A Conversation with the UN Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees T. Alexander Aleinikoff

UN Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees T. Alexander Aleinikoff joined Kathleen Newland for a discussion on the Syrian refugee and internally displaced population, now considered one of the biggest humanitarian emergencies in a generation.

Articles
November 1, 2013

Responding to the Syrian Refugee Crisis: A Conversation with T. Alexander Aleinikoff, UN Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees

United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees T. Alexander Aleinikoff talks to MPI about the ongoing Syrian refugee crisis and the role of UNHCR in assisting countries that have taken in large numbers of Syrian refugees. One looming concern: how will UNHCR and other actors change their refugee crisis-response models and mechanisms to adapt to this and future emergencies?

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