Global Program
The Global Program acts as a policy laboratory for innovative, evidence-based, and politically feasible solutions to migration policy challenges. From direct policy advice to deep comparative research, its work interrogates policy design and effectiveness, helps countries newer to immigration learn from innovation and evidence in other regions, and anticipates how demographic, economic, and technological shifts will reshape migration in the years ahead. It supports governments in responding to crises with greater coordination and foresight, and provides a trusted off-the-record space for engaging with sensitive topics. Its main geographical focus is Europe, the Americas, and Australia, but it increasingly works with governments and other partners worldwide, including in East Africa and Asia. For more on the Global Program, click here.
Featured
Population Aging Is Here. Immigration Can Offer Half an Answer.
Immigration on its own cannot solve population aging, but five policy principles can help it play a more effective role in a broader demographic…
Creating Inclusive Urban Economies for Migrants and Refugees
Cities hold powerful levers to turn migrants' and refugees' underused talent into economic growth—but doing so requires moving beyond first…
More Featured Work
Key Statistics
International migrants comprise 3.7 percent of the global population. Learn more about them
304.0 million
The number of migrants globally in 2024
50.6 million
The number who as of 2025 were refugees or asylum seekers
94.0 million
The number of international migrants in Europe—the top destination globally
Showing 361–370 of 696 results
Beyond Transactional Deals: Building lasting migration partnerships in the Mediterranean
Migration partnerships built on shared objectives and legal channels—such as the Spain-Morocco arrangement—prove far more durable than enforcement-first transactional deals.
From Forced Migration to Forced Returns in Afghanistan: Policy and Program Implications
Forced returns to Afghanistan are rising despite ongoing conflict, and high re-emigration rates suggest that narrowly economic reintegration programs are not working.
The Global Compact for Migration: How Does Development Fit In?
The 2018 Global Compact for Migration offers a chance to turn migration-development commitments into action, with issue-specific state coalitions the most realistic path.
Legal Channels for Refugee Protection in Europe: A pivotal moment for strategic thinking
Following the release of the mid-term review of the European Agenda on Migration, this webinar offers insights from EU Member States on how existing, new, and untapped legal pathways interact with other humanitarian policies, and fit into a larger protection strategy.
The Role of Think Tanks in Times of (Migration) Crisis: A transatlantic perspective
As European policymakers and publics continue to grapple with the migration crisis, this conversation offers an opportunity to reflect on the role and responsibility of experts in these politically sensitive debates.
Tracing the Channels Refugees Use to Seek Protection in Europe
Europe cannot reliably track how refugees arrive, but available data point to irregular entry as dominant and resettlement as covering only 1 in 10 protection decisions.
Engaging Communities in Refugee Protection: The potential of private sponsorship in Europe
Private refugee sponsorship can expand legal pathways to protection and improve integration, but European programmes must resolve three core design tensions to succeed.
The International Migration System: Reflections on the Challenges and Opportunities Ahead
A reflection by MPI's co-founder, Demetrios Papademetriou, as he takes leave from his day-to-day role at MPI on the challenges and opportunities ahead for international migration systems over the next few decades. After opening remarks, Papademetriou engages in a conversation with incoming MPI President Andrew Selee about the trends and realities confronting policymakers and publics.
How Are Refugees Faring? Integration at U.S. and State Levels
Refugee integration outcomes in four major U.S. states vary more by national origin than by state policy, suggesting state placement matters less than previously assumed.
Weathering Crisis, Forging Ahead: Swedish Asylum and Integration Policy
Sweden's 2015 asylum surge buckled its reception system, and the border controls and benefit cuts that followed may undermine the immigrant integration they were meant to protect.
