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E.g., 04/23/2024
Migration & Development

Migration & Development

Brain Drain & Brain Gain
Circular Migration
Climate Change
Development Impacts
Diaspora Engagement
Remittances
_DevelopmentImpacts

Governments, development specialists, and others have rediscovered the connections between migration and development. Yet while increasing volumes of research have focused on the actual and potential contributions of migrant communities to sustainable development or poverty reduction in their countries of origin, the findings have not been systematically translated into policy guidance. One result is that little coherence is to be found between the development and migration policies of governments in countries of destination and origin—a reality that the research offered here seeks to address.

Recent Activity

Image of man on steps in front of China Import and Export Fair in Guangzhou, China
Articles
January 28, 2022
China’s Rapid Development Has Transformed Its Migration Trends
By Heidi Østbø Haugen and Tabitha Speelman
Cover image for Lessons from the European Negotiations of the Global Compact for Migration
Reports
January 2022
The Winding Road to Marrakech: Lessons from the European Negotiations of the Global Compact for Migration
By  Lena Kainz and Camille Le Coz
Cover image for How Can Europe Deliver on the Potential of Talent Partnerships?
Policy Briefs
December 2021
How Can Europe Deliver on the Potential of Talent Partnerships?
By  Kate Hooper
Multimedia
December 10, 2021
When Climate Change Comes to Refugee Settings
Multimedia
November 24, 2021
Thinking Regionally to Act Locally in Immigration Policy
Cover image for The Complex Motivations and Costs of Central American Migration
Reports
November 2021
Charting a New Regional Course of Action: The Complex Motivations and Costs of Central American Migration
By  Ariel G. Ruiz Soto, Rossella Bottone, Jaret Waters, Sarah Williams, Ashley Louie and Yuehan Wang
Two boys pose in an informal settlement east of Johannesburg largely populated by immigrants.
Articles
November 18, 2021
South Africa Reckons with Its Status as a Top Immigration Destination, Apartheid History, and Economic Challenges
By Khangelani Moyo
Cover image for Invertir en alternativas a la migración irregular desde Centroamérica
Policy Briefs
November 2021
Invertir en alternativas a la migración irregular desde Centroamérica: Opciones para expandir las vías de empleo en Estados Unidos
By  Cristobal Ramón

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Policy Briefs
September 2012
Strengthening Pre-Departure Orientation Programmes in Indonesia, Nepal and the Philippines
By  Maruja M.B. Asis and Dovelyn Rannveig Mendoza
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Reports
August 2012
Central American Development: Two Decades of Progress and Challenges for the Future
By  Hugo Beteta
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Reports
August 2012
Understanding Mexico's Economic Underperformance
By  Gordon H. Hanson
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Policy Briefs
August 2012
Regulating Private Recruitment in the Asia-Middle East Labour Migration Corridor
By  Dovelyn Rannveig Mendoza
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Policy Briefs
June 2012
Asian Labour Migrants and Health: Exploring Policy Routes
By  Jaime Calderon, Barbara Rijks and Dovelyn Rannveig Mendoza
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Books
June 2012
Developing a Road Map for Engaging Diasporas in Development: A Handbook for Policymakers and Practitioners in Home and Host Countries
By  Dovelyn Rannveig Mendoza and Kathleen Newland
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Policy Briefs
May 2012
Labour Migration from Colombo Process Countries: Good Practices, Challenges and Ways Forward
By  Dovelyn Rannveig Mendoza and Christine Aghazarm
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Reports
April 2012
The Development and Fiscal Effects of Emigration on Mexico
By  Raymundo Campos-Vazquez and Horacio Sobarzo

Pages

A boy walks through a coastal village in Honduras.
Feature
June 10, 2021
Intersecting Crises: Pandemic and Hurricanes Add to Political Instability Driving Migration from Honduras

A disproportionate number of Central American migrants traveling through Mexico to the United States come from Honduras, driven by government corruption, impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, and hurricanes that have devastated communities and livelihoods. This article examine the multiple factors behind migration from the country, drawing from interviews with migrants en route.

Returned migrants participate in development work in Burkina Faso.
Feature
May 6, 2021
Europe’s Tackling of ‘Root Causes’ of African Migration Has a Mixed Record

The European Union has tried to leverage development assistance to address root causes of migration from Africa, including poverty, instability, and conflict. The EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa, unveiled in 2015, has supported more than 250 programs totaling nearly 5 billion euros across 26 countries, but has had only partial success addressing the underlying drivers of migration, as this article explains.

Scaffolding surrounds a mosque in Iran.
Feature
April 22, 2021
Iran Loses Highly Educated and Skilled Citizens during Long-Running “Brain Drain”

Large numbers of well-educated Iranians have left their country of birth since its 1979 revolution, in a “brain drain” that has held back Iran’s economy and cultural institutions. Iran’s isolation from the world has worsened in recent years, and a stuttering economy, currency freefall, and widespread impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have contributed to the underlying factors encouraging emigration, as this article examines.

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Spotlight
March 10, 2021
Immigrants from Asia in the United States

Nearly one-third of all immigrants in the United States come from Asia, and Asian countries such as India, China, and the Philippines are the origin for a growing number of foreign-born U.S. residents. Compared to overall immigrants and the U.S. born, the foreign born from Asia tend to earn higher incomes, work in management jobs, and have higher levels of education, as this article explores.

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Feature
February 18, 2021
Climate Extremes, Food Insecurity, and Migration in Central America: A Complicated Nexus

Climate change has had a devastating impact on many poor Central American farmers, which can contribute to food insecurity and may be prompting migration from the region's Dry Corridor. But the process is not straightforward. As this article explains, most poor farmers rely on a combination of buying, cultivating, and foraging for their food, which makes it difficult to predict how people will react to individual climate events.

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EventPH 2015.9.22 LeftBehindChildrenofAsianLabourMigrants
Audio
September 24, 2015

A Discussion on the Effects of Asian Labor Migration on the Health of Left-Behind Children

This discussion, at the Bangkok launch of an MPI-International Organization for Migration issue brief, explores the social and health impacts of international labor migration on the children who remain at home when one or both their parents emigrate.

EventPH 2015.07.22 Beyond Asylum Adapting the Global Protection System to Better Meet Escalating Needs UNHCR
Video, Audio
July 22, 2015

Beyond Asylum: Adapting the Global Protection System to Better Meet Escalating Needs

This webinar examines innovative ideas to adapt the global protection system to better meet the growing challenges of forced migration and to empower refugees through development-led responses to displacement.

EventPH 2015.3.26 Womens Labour Migration from Asia and the Pacific
Audio
March 26, 2015

The Asia-Pacific and Women’s Labour Migration

Marking the release of the 12th MPI-IOM Issue in Brief, this event in Bangkok examined the emerging trends in women’s labor migration in the Asia-Pacific region, and the related opportunities and challenges. The audio does not include opening remarks and begins with the author's presentation.

EVENTPH 2014.12.16 Flow of Skilled Labour within ASEAN
Audio
December 16, 2014

A ‘Freer’ Flow of Skilled Labour within ASEAN: Aspirations, Opportunities, and Challenges in 2015 and Beyond

This Bangkok launch of the MPI-IOM Issue in Brief "A ‘Freer’ Flow of Skilled Labour within ASEAN: Aspirations, Opportunities and Challenges in 2015 and Beyond" explored the creation of the ASEAN Economic Community and its vision of a freer flow of skilled labor, as well as other migration issues affecting the region.

EVENTPH 2014.9.18 IOM MPI Integration Migration into Development Goals
Audio
September 18, 2014

Integrating Migration into the Post-2015 United Nations Development Agenda

A discussion and release in Bangkok of an MPI-IOM issue brief examining the role of migration as a driver for development in Asia and how to integrate migration-related targets and indicators into the post-2015 development agenda.

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Recent Activity

Policy Briefs
February 2021

Rewiring Migrant Returns and Reintegration after the COVID-19 Shock

Migrant returns and reintegration have been the subject of intense international debate in recent years, and the COVID-19 pandemic has added an extra layer of complexity as millions of migrants have been expelled or returned voluntarily. This policy brief explores the effects of the pandemic on migrant returns, reception, and reintegration, and how countries of origin and destination can improve their policies and partnerships going forward, with a focus on sustainable reintegration.

Expert Q&A, Audio
January 12, 2021

How Climate-Linked Food Insecurity Shapes Migration

Reliable access to food—or lack thereof—can affect an individual’s decision to migrate. Climate change has the ability to exacerbate food insecurity, especially for farmers and others who live off the land, which can have repercussions for human mobility. In this episode of our Changing Climate, Changing Migration podcast, we talk with Megan Carney, an anthropologist and director of the University of Arizona’s Center for Regional Food Studies, to examine the role of food security in the connection between climate change and migration.

Expert Q&A, Audio
December 30, 2020

Talking Money: Climate Finance and Migration

Billions of dollars are being spent on projects to help communities mitigate and adapt to the impacts of climate change, including those at risk of being displaced by environmental events. This episode of our Changing Climate, Changing Migration podcast features Timo Schmidt, from MPI Europe, in a discussion about the growing field of climate finance and its implications for migration management and displacement prevention.

Expert Q&A, Audio
December 16, 2020

Purposeful and Coordinated: Climate Change and Managed Retreat in India

Confronting environmental change, whole communities sometimes relocate from one area to another. This purposeful, coordinated movement, while currently rare, is referred to as managed retreat. In this episode of our Changing Climate, Changing Migration podcast, Architesh Panda, from the London School of Economics’ Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, explains how this climate adaptation strategy works in India.

Reports
December 2020

How Will International Migration Policy and Sustainable Development Affect Future Climate-Related Migration?

Climate change is likely to increase the intensity of extreme-weather events already shaping human mobility and displacement. The nature, scale, and direction of future climate-related migration will depend on many factors. This report takes stock of the influence that different combinations of migration, development, and climate policies could have on migration in regions around the world for the 2020-2050 and 2050-2100 periods, using a first-of-its-kind systematic exercise.

Reports
December 2020

New Approaches to Climate Change and Migration: Building the Adaptive Capacity of Mobile Populations

The link between climate change and migration is a complex one. Whether individuals move or stay in place can be voluntary or involuntary, a proactive strategy or last resort, and is part of a bigger story of global mobility and personal networks. This report examines this complicated relationship, highlights limitations of climate response measures to date, and presents an alternative, flexible approach based on the involvement of affected communities.

Policy Briefs
December 2020

The Divergent Trajectories of the Global Migration and Refugee Compacts: Implementation amid Crisis

National governments and UN agencies have been working to implement the Global Compact on Refugees and the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration. Where has the most progress been made as the compacts hit the two-year mark? And how has the process played out differently for the two pacts? This policy brief explores these questions, the growing divergence between the pacts, and how challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic are shaping implementation.

Reports
December 2020

Construcción de un nuevo sistema migratorio regional: Redefiniendo la cooperación entre Estados Unidos con México y Centroamérica

Un desafío y una oportunidad clave que enfrentará la administración de Joe Biden será cómo abordar la cooperación regional en relación a la migración. Este informe explora la evolución de la movilidad entre los Estados Unidos, México y Centroamérica y presenta una estrategia para ampliar las oportunidades en cuanto a la migración legal, abordar necesidades humanitarias, fortalecer la aplicación de la ley y mitigar algunas de las fuerzas que provocan la emigración.

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