E.g., 04/17/2024
E.g., 04/17/2024
Migrants, Migration, and Development

Migrants, Migration, and Development

A woman in Nigeria smiles while using her mobile phone
iStock.com/Wirestock

Remittances are a vital lifeline for migrants’ families around the world and an important source of revenue for many low- and middle-income countries, especially in times of crisis. As more people turn to digital financial technologies for these money transfers, this shift holds the potential to shake up the rigid remittance industry and boost development benefits. But it also brings new challenges, as this report explores.

A migrant worker cuts through a metal rod at a construction site in Qatar
Apex Image/ILO

With more people moving abroad for work and events such as the 2022 World Cup in Qatar highlighting the risks migrant workers can face, questions about how international recruitment occurs have received increased scrutiny. This policy brief explores the notable progress that has been made in establishing fair and ethical recruitment standards, and identifies key areas for future attention by governments, employers, and recruiters.

Colorful speech bubbles
iStock.com/incomible

El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras have long histories of emigration, but are seeing increasing transit and return migration as well. This report explores the stories told within these three countries about migration in all its forms, how these narratives intersect with (and at times, contradict) each other, and how they influence policy decisions and public opinion.

Migrant workers at a textile factory in Jordan
© ILO/Jared J. Kohler

Migrant workers can pay a range of costs when they are recruited and relocate for jobs abroad, accruing significant debt. While many countries, international organizations, and other stakeholders have sought to reduce or eliminate recruitment costs, the pandemic has exacerbated and added to these expenses. This policy brief explores how the costs migrant workers face have changed, and what these developments mean for efforts to promote fair and ethical recruitment.

Aerial view of a flooded residential area in Pakistan
© UNICEF/Asad Zaidi

Multilateral development banks (MDBs) have emerged as major players in responding to climate change, investing in sustainable infrastructure and climate resilience. But while many MDBs have shown interest in projects with positive impacts for climate migrants and host communities, they sometimes struggle to maximize these effects. This report examines MDBs’ role in responding to climate-related migration and displacement to date and opportunities to scale up their work.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and other leaders at the 2022 Summit of the Americas
Freddie Everett/State Department

The Los Angeles Agreement on Migration and Protection signed by leaders from 20 countries across the Western Hemisphere at the 2022 Summit of the Americas marks a significant step forward in creating a common language and a coherent set of ideas for more cooperatively managing migration movements across a region that has seen very significant mobility in recent years, as this commentary explains.

Recent Activity

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Global Governance of International Migration 2.0: What Lies Ahead?
Policy Briefs
February 2019
By  Kathleen Newland
Coverthumb MPI StrengtheningRefugeeProtection
Policy Briefs
February 2019
By  Susan Fratzke and Camille Le Coz
Coverthumb GlobalCompact Returning Migrants
Policy Briefs
October 2018
By  Kathleen Newland and Brian Salant
Coverthumb GlobalCompact SkillPartnerships
Policy Briefs
September 2018
By  Kate Hooper
Coverthumb MigrationAndDevelopmentPartnerships
Policy Briefs
July 2018
By  Kate Hooper and Kathleen Newland
Coverthumb LegalPathwaysLowSkilledWorkers
Policy Briefs
January 2018
By  Kathleen Newland and Andrea Riester
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Policy Briefs
January 2018
By  Susan Fratzke and Brian Salant
Coverthumb GlobalCompactForMigration Brief1
Policy Briefs
November 2017
By  Kathleen Newland

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Development practitioners have long been aware of the change-making potential of diasporas, but only recently have begun to design programs that convert their latent talent and enthusiasm into results. This article by Tedla W. Giorgis and Aaron Terrazas examines the Ethiopian Diaspora Volunteer Program (EDVP) as a powerful example of how diasporas, donors, and developing countries work together to build from individual strengths and address common challenges facing the developing world.

For many developing countries, migrants are considered valuable contributors to future development. As proof of their commitment, they have invested in diaspora institutions with responsibilities ranging from protecting migrants to encouraging investment. MPI's Dovelyn Rannveig Agunias analyzes 45 such institutions across 30 countries and breaks them down by type.

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The world's second most populous country also has a vast diapora spread across nearly every continent. Daniel Naujoks provides a broad overview of Indian migration flows and major populations worldwide, and discusses India's diaspora policies, refugees and asylum seekers from the region, and illegal immigrants from Bangladesh.

Belonging to a diaspora entails a consciousness of, or emotional attachment to, a place of origin and its culture. Steve Vertovec of the University of Oxford explains the role diasporas play in migrant-sending and migrant-receiving countries.

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Expert Q&A, Audio
April 2, 2021

Popular discussions usually frame climate change-induced migration negatively, often as a strategy of last resort. But migrating abroad can also be an effective way to build resilience against the impacts of climate change.

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Expert Q&A, Audio
March 2, 2021

Climate change and international migration both are global issues with aspects that countries try to manage through treaties, pacts, and other types of agreements. But most of the global governance frameworks that exist for climate-induced migration require only voluntary commitments by states.

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Expert Q&A, Audio
February 19, 2021

Among the earliest examples of the disruptions that climate change can bring, some low-lying island countries in the Pacific Ocean are facing serious threats from rising sea levels and coastal erosion. Over the long term, atoll nations such as Kiribati, Tuvalu, and the Marshall Islands might eventually need to relocate some or all of their populations.

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Expert Q&A, Audio
December 30, 2020

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.

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Expert Q&A, Audio
December 17, 2020

Pre-COVID-19, we lived in a hyper-global world. There were 1.5 billion international tourism trips annually, nearly 40 million flights, and 272 million international migrants. This raises a provocative question: Does international mobility contribute to the spread of pandemics?

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Recent Activity

Expert Q&A, Audio
October 1, 2021

In Western countries, a common narrative has developed that only poor or developing nations will have to confront human displacement caused by climate change. But communities in the United States and elsewhere have repeatedly moved because of environmental disasters such as flooding. This episode of our Changing Climate, Changing Migration podcast features a discussion on the U.S. government’s responses to internal displacement, with Kavi Chintam and Chris Jackson, co-authors of an Issues in Science and Technology article analyzing the approach to managed retreat.

Video, Audio, Webinars
August 26, 2021

On this webinar speakers discuss a recent policy brief Deepening Labor Migration Governance at a Time of Immobility: Lessons from Ghana and Senegal. Experts and government officials from the region and Europe explore the importance of labor migration for West Africa, related policy efforts by the Ghanaian and Senegalese governments, and how development agencies can best support African countries in resuming mobility and enhancing the development benefits of labor migration.

Reports
July 2021

Más de cinco años después de que números importantes de venezolanos empezaron a salir de su país, se ha vuelto cada vez más claro que muchos de ellos permanecerán en los países a los que migraron, si no permanentemente, por un largo periodo. ¿Cómo se están integrando en países claves de América del Sur? Este informe evalúa la inclusión económica, el acceso a la salud y a la educación, y la cohesión social, así como las condiciones cambiantes a causa de la pandemia.

Reports
July 2021

More than five years since Venezuelans began emigrating in large numbers, it is becoming clear that many plan to stay abroad for an extended time, if not permanently. How are they settling into life in key South American destination countries? This report explores their economic inclusion, access to education and health care, social cohesion, and more, and how conditions have changed amid the pandemic.

Policy Briefs
July 2021

The pandemic has dramatically curtailed labor migration opportunities in West Africa, as it has around the world. What does this mean for countries such as Ghana and Senegal that have been working to improve their governance of international labor migration? This brief explores the evolution of these countries’ migration policies, efforts to facilitate labor migration, and strategies to engage their diasporas.

Commentaries
June 2021

As the United States embarks on a new strategy to address the root causes of migration and displacement from Central America, there is much that it can learn from Europe's experience in linking up migration and development aid. This commentary examines the experience of the EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa (EUTF), drawing five key lessons directly applicable to the situation in Central America.

Policy Briefs
June 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic challenged public health and migration management infrastructures in sub-Saharan Africa, as never before. It revealed important lessons about how countries in the region can adapt mobility systems in ways that protect public health while also allowing people to safely access work, humanitarian protection, and their communities.

Video, Audio, Webinars
May 19, 2021

In April 2021, the European Commission took a step toward the creation of a common EU return system, releasing its first Strategy on Voluntary Return and Reintegration. This MPI Europe event, marking the release of EU Strategy on Voluntary Return and Reintegration: Crafting a Road Map to Better Cooperation with Migrants’ Countries of Origin, examines origin- and destination-country policy priorities surrounding return, opportunities for cooperation, and possible next steps in policy development. 

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