Labour Migration from Colombo Process Countries: Good Practices, Challenges and Ways Forward By Dovelyn Rannveig Agunias and Christine Aghazarm This issue brief, the first in a series launched by MPI and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) that examines migration trends and issues in Asia, discusses labor migration from the 11 Colombo Process countries (which include China, India, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Vietnam). Since 2005, these countries have taken concrete steps to manage these labor flows and protect their citizens working abroad, particularly with respect to recruitment regulation and welfare protection. Despite the progress, however, the brief details a number of remaining challenges and highlights possible areas of focus for these governments. Download Brief | Press Release
	Developing a Road Map for Engaging Diasporas in Development By Dovelyn Rannveig Agunias and Kathleen Newland Governments at both ends of the migration cycle increasingly are seeking ways to magnify the human capital and financial resources that emigrants and their descendants contribute to development in their countries of origin. This user-friendly handbook offers a strategic road map for governments in both origin and destination countries to build a constructive relationship with diasporas. The guide, a project of MPI and the International Organization for Migration, offers practical advice to policymakers and practitioners and details the wide range of institutions that governments worldwide have established to work with diasporas. Learn More About Handbook | Press Release
	The Development and Fiscal Effects of Emigration on Mexico By Raymundo Campos-Vazquez and Horacio Sobarzo The economic consequences of emigration on migrants’ countries of origin have long been studied, yet the precise assessment of positive and negative impacts remains complex. This analysis finds that when the labor market effects and household income benefits of remittances are compiled into a model of the Mexican economy, Mexico’s fiscal balance appears to benefit from emigration – its GDP rising by 8.8 percent and tax collection by 7.4 percent. Download Report
	Migration and Development Policy: What Have We Learned? By Kathleen Newland Migration and development have become a pressing policy priority on the global agenda over the past decade, and a number of revisions to conventional thinking on the subject have gained traction and yielded innovative — albeit in many cases yet unproven — policies and programs. This brief identifies critical lessons from the past decade of policy experimentation and offers some recommendations for policy moving forward. Download Brief
	Climate Change and Migration Dynamics By Kathleen Newland Climate change is a new driver of human migration, and is expected by many to dwarf all other factors in its impact. But while there is growing concern about climate change, far less agreement exists about what kinds of effects will be felt where, by whom, and precisely when. Human displacement is a result of a complex mix of factors, and some of the more commonly repeated predictions of the numbers of people who will be displaced by climate change are not informed by a full understanding of the dynamics of migration. This report analyzes the salient mechanisms of displacement: sea level rise, higher temperatures, disruption of water cycles, and increasing severity of storms. It also examines the ensuing migration responses and proposes recommendations to offset the severity of displacement. Download Report
	Running in Circles: Progress and Challenges in Regulating Recruitment of Filipino and Sri Lankan Labor Migrants to Jordan By Dovelyn Rannveig Agunias Labor migration from the Philippines and Sri Lanka to Jordan has filled a growing share of unskilled and semi-skilled jobs in recent years, with private recruitment agencies playing an important role in facilitating and driving labor migration. But despite a comprehensive set of laws and guidelines to control migration systems in these countries, workers remain vulnerable to abuse and exploitation at the hands of recruitment agents. Excessive placement fees, violations of contractual terms and conditions, underpayment or nonpayment of wages, poor working or living conditions, confiscation of passports, and even physical abuse highlight the significant gaps in these countries' migration protection systems. This report identifies problem areas and recommends ways to strengthen system management. Download Report | Press Release
	Migration and Development: Policy Perspectives from the United States By Aaron Terrazas As migration has become an increasingly visible global phenomenon in recent decades, there has been heightened interest in the complex relationship between migration and the development prospects of migrants’ countries of origin. While individual migrants and their families tend to benefit from the decision to seek opportunities abroad, the consequences for migrant communities and countries of origin are more ambiguous. This report examines the evidence and whether there is any role for US policymakers to play. Download Report | European Report
	Voice After Exit: Diaspora Advocacy By Kathleen Newland Today’s diaspora organizations, communities, and individuals increasingly seek to influence government, media, private sectors, and other prominent groups in their countries of origin and of settlement – but despite their growing voice, success requires smart policy. This report, the sixth in our series on diaspora engagement, provides an overview of diaspora advocacy by looking at five issues: who participates in diaspora advocacy, who or what are the “targets” in these efforts, what means are used to advance these causes, what are the issues on which they focus, and the effectiveness of the efforts. Download Report
	Mobilizing Diaspora Entrepreneurship for Development By Kathleen Newland and Hiroyuki Tanaka Diasporas are in a unique position to have a positive effect on the economy of their countries of origin – the key is for those countries to seize the opportunities. This report, the fifth in a series examining the role of diasporas in development policy, documents how diaspora entrepreneurs often are motivated to contribute to job creation and economic growth in their native lands. But, as the report outlines, many developing countries have met only limited success in attracting diaspora investors and entrepreneurs. The study offers some key findings and policy options. Download Report
	Heritage Tourism and Nostalgia Trade: A Diaspora Niche in the Development Landscape By Kathleen Newland and Carylanna Taylor Diasporas can play an important role in promoting trade and tourism in their countries of origin, particularly since it is difficult to introduce and establish unfamiliar goods and new tourist destinations in the international market. This report, the fourth in a series examining the role of diasporas in development policy, examines how nostalgia trade and heritage tourism can involve diaspora populations in transactions that ease the integration of their homeland economies into an increasingly connected global economy, while also helping diasporas to maintain their ties to their countries of origin or ancestry. Download Report
	Diaspora Philanthropy: Private Giving and Public Policy By Kathleen Newland, Aaron Terrazas, and Roberto Munster This report, the third in a series examining the role of diasporas in development policy, analyzes the evolving role of diaspora philanthropy in countries of origin. The study examines the emergence of nongovernmental development actors and new trends in global philanthropy, such as strategic giving and use of online platforms to harness small donations. It also discusses public policies, in both donor and developing countries, that can encourage or discourage philanthropic giving. Download Report
	Connected through Service: Diaspora Volunteers and Global Development By Aaron Terrazas Nearly 1 million US residents spend time volunteering abroad each year, including nearly 200,000 first- and second-generation immigrants. Diasporas often have the connections, knowledge, and personal drive to volunteer outside the framework of organized volunteer programs. But many also volunteer through established programs. As skilled migration and the number of US youth with ancestors in the developing world grow over the coming years, the potential for both skilled diaspora volunteers and youth diaspora volunteers will increase. This report is the second in a series of studies examining the role of diasporas in development policy. Download Report
	Diaspora Investment in Developing and Emerging Country Capital Markets: Patterns and Prospects By Aaron Terrazas Financial flows from migrants and their descendants are at the heart of the relationship between migration and development. There is little doubt that remittances can have important effects on financial development. But they represent only a fraction of the potential private financial flows originating from diasporas, with substantial evidence showing that diasporas hold substantial financial assets beyond their current income — for instance, in savings and retirement accounts, in property, debt, and equity. Remittances tap the incomes of migrants, but this report argues that the greater challenge is to mobilize the wealth of diasporas. Capital markets perform precisely this function, mobilizing savings and channeling them to productive investment. This report is the first in a series of six studies on the role of diasporas in development policy. Download Report
	Migration's Middlemen: Regulating Recruitment Agencies in the Philippines-United Arab Emirates Corridor By Dovelyn Rannveig Agunias Private recruitment agencies manage much of the flow of the 200,000 Filipino workers who head to annually to the United Arab Emirates, which is the third-largest destination for Filipino migrants after the United States and Saudi Arabia. While the recruitment agencies provide critical services, some abuse their clients by charging exorbitant fees or violating basic human rights. This report, based on exhaustive interviews with key actors and migrants themselves, examines the recruiters' practices as well as their regulation by the Philippine and UAE governments, finding room for significant improvement. Download Report | Press Release
	Protection through Integration: The Mexican Government's Efforts to Aid Migrants in the United States By Laureen Laglagaron Immigrant integration remains largely an afterthought in US immigration policy discussions and the country's integration policies remain chronically underfunded and limited in scope. Local and informal actors such as families and community-based organizations have historically taken on this responsibility. However, as this report explores, new partners are emerging. Mexico's efforts to help its migrants succeed in the United States offer a new example of an immigrant-sending country looking to improve its emigrants' lives and connect with its diaspora. The report examines the evolution of Mexico's approach to its migrants and details the activities of Mexico's Institute of Mexicans Abroad (IME) in a first-ever attempt to map the expanding range of IME educational, health care, financial, and civic engagement programs. Download Report | Press Release | Listen/Download Event Audio
	Learning by Doing: Experiences of Circular Migration By Kathleen Newland, Dovelyn Rannveig Agunias, and Aaron Terrazas Increasingly, policymakers are considering whether circular migration could improve the likelihood that global mobility gains will be shared by migrant-origin and destination countries alike — as well as by migrants themselves. This MPI Insight examines the record of circular migration, both where it has arisen naturally and where governments have taken action to encourage it. Download Report | Press Release Purchase a hard copy at the MPI bookstore: US | International
	Hometown Associations: An Untapped Resource for Immigrant Integration? By Will Somerville, Jamie Durana, and Aaron Matteo Terrazas Hometown associations, the organizations that immigrants create for social, economic development, and political empowerment purposes, play an important – and underexamined – role in immigrant integration. Though policymakers focus chiefly on the associations’ development potential, this MPI Insight recommends cooperative interventions to strengthen their immigrant integration capacity. Download Report | Press Release
	Protecting Overseas Workers: Lessons and Cautions from the Philippines By Dovelyn Rannveig Agunias, MPI, and Neil Ruiz, Brookings Institution Insight, September 2007 The Philippine case highlights the importance of meeting the core needs of overseas workers without overextending the government’s capacity; establishing political, administrative, and financial transparency and accountability; and effectively using government resources.

Migration and Development Publications| All MPI Publications

Kathleen Newland
Director, Migrants, Migration, and Development and Refugee Policy programs

Governments, multilateral agencies, and development specialists have recently rediscovered the connections between migration and development. Increasing volumes of research are focusing on the actual and potential contributions of migrant communities to sustainable development or the reduction of poverty in their countries of origin.

The findings have not been systematically translated into policy guidance, however, and important topics remain underinvestigated. One result is that little coherence is to be found between the development policies and the migration policies of governments in either countries of destination or countries of origin. Since 2004, MPI has begun to address the paucity of policy analysis in its newest program area: Migrants, Migration, and Development.

MPI is deeply engaged in efforts to encourage a multilateral discussion and exchange of experience through the September 2006 UN High-Level Dialogue on Migration and Development and the Global Forum on Migration and Development, which was the main outcome of the September meeting. MPI staffs the Secretary-General’s Special Representative on Migration and Development, Mr. Peter Sutherland. For the first Global Forum, in July 2007, MPI is organizing workshops on the two main substantive issues to be discussed: remittances and the human capital implications of migration. MPI will also cooperate with the conveners of the second Global Forum in 2008.

In the coming biennium, MPI’s work in migration and development will draw out the policy implications of a voluminous and rapidly expanding body of literature — much of which is primarily theoretical or descriptive — and evaluate whether it implies a major revision of conventional understandings of migration-and-development linkages.

A second strand of work will produce new research findings on diaspora engagement in countries of origin (through such mechanisms as foreign direct investment, technological innovation, and private philanthropy) and on the migration-related development policies of countries of origin as well as donor countries and institutions. We will also emphasize the critical role of broader macroeconomic conditions that may support or undermine the development potential of particular migration policy
interventions. The macroeconomic impacts of remittances are very poorly understood and thus will be a major focus of work in this area.

In conjunction with its research and analysis, MPI will convene policy discussions with important stakeholders, in particular policymakers, to discuss and vet the research agenda and our findings in relation to the specific circumstances of their own countries and institutions.

More on MPI's policy research....

The United Nations Development Program's Human Development Report 2009 addresses the impact of migration and human development. MPI's two expert background papers for the 2009 report are offered here:

Guiding the Invisible Hand: Making Migration Intermediaries Work for Development
By Dovelyn Agunias
This paper traces the legitimate role of intermediaries in providing information and extending critical services in various stages of migration, thereby expanding migrants' range of choices. However, the value of intermediaries is, in many cases, overshadowed by the costs they impose on migrants, from exorbitant fees to outright abuse of basic human rights. The paper discusses the fact that there is room for intervention to regulate intermediaries and shape their operations in more positive directions.
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Circular Migration and Human Development
By Kathleen Newland
The paper discusses various conceptions and definitions of circular migration, and concludes that circular migration is not intrinsically positive or negative in relation to human development. Its impact depends upon the circumstances in which it occurs, the constraints that surround it and — above all — the degree of choice that individuals can exercise over their own mobility.
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Running in Circles: Progress and Challenges in Regulating Recruitment of Filipino and Sri Lankan Labor Migrants to Jordan
Report release with MPI Policy Analyst and IOM Regional Research Officer Dovelyn Rannveig Agunias; His Excellency, Dr. Khleif Al Khawaldeh, Secretary General, Ministry of Labor in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan; Linda Al-Kalash, Human Rights Programs Manager, Tamkeen Center for Legal Aid; His Excellency Julius D. Torres, Ambassador, Embassy of the Philippines in Amman, Jordan; His Excellency A.W . Mohottala, Ambassador, Embassy of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka in Amman, Jordan; and Tauhid Pasha, Program Manager, International Organization for Migration.
July 28, 2011 at The University of Jordan - Amman, Jordan
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Giving Back to India: The Forms and Accomplishments of Indian-American Philanthropy
The Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Migration Policy Institute, and the Indian Council for Overseas Employment hosted a panel discussion with Mahinder Tak, Co- Chair of the Democratic National Committee's Indo-American Council; Pradeep Kashyap, Executive Director, American India Foundation; B.P. Agrawal, Executive Director, Sustainable Innovations Inc.; Mark Sidel, Professor of Law and Lauridsen Family Fellow at the University of Iowa, and Past President, International Society for Third Sector Research; and Sudhir Parikh, Philanthropist, Physician and Allergist in the United States, and Chairman and Publisher of Parikh Worldwide Media Inc, with a keynote address by A. Didar Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs. This panel discussion was held in association with maximum INDIA - A festival of Indian arts and culture at the Kennedy Center.
March 19, 2011
Kennedy Center

Science and Technology, Entrepreneurship and Innovation: Building Bridges between India and the United States
The Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Migration Policy Institute, and the Indian Council for Overseas Employment hosted a panel discussion with Harvard Associate Professor K. "Vish" Viswanath; MIT Senior Associate Dean and Office of Educational Innovation and Technology Director M.S. Vijay Kumar; Centennial Group Global Knowledge and Innovation Practice Head Vinod K. Goel; and One Laptop per Child President and CEO Satish Jha; with a keynote given by Indian Ambassador to the United States Meera Shankar. This panel discussion was held in association with maximum INDIA - A festival of Indian arts and culture at the Kennedy Center.
March 18, 2011
Kennedy Center

Migration's Middlemen: Regulating Recruitment Agencies in the Philippines-UAE Corridor
MPI report release with report author Dovelyn Rannveig Agunias, MPI Policy Analyst; Luzviminda Padilla, Labor Attaché, Philippines Embassy in Washington; Jeni Klugman, Director, Human Development Report Office, United Nations Development Program (TBC); and Kathleen Newland, MPI Director of the Migrants, Migration, and Development, and Refugee Policy Programs.
June 3, 2010
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SPECIAL ISSUE ON MIGRATION AND DEVELOPMENT:

This Special Issue brings you a fresh look at this hot topic, from Mexico's experience to remittances in India to the link between temporary worker programs and development. Plus, Source authors examine hometown associations, health-care workers in the United States, and migration issues in Ecuador. The Source's first Special Issue on Migration and Development in 2003 also includes articles from globally renowned experts.