Migrants, Migration, and Development

Migration & Development

Refugee & Asylum Policy

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Asylum Seekers

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Commentaries

June 2021

Lessons from Europe: The U.S. Opportunity to Rethink the Links Between Development Assistance and Migration

Photo of woman in Central African Republic participating in cash for work program

Amanda Nero/IOM

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

May 2021

EU Strategy on Voluntary Return and Reintegration: Crafting a Road Map to Better Cooperation with Migrants’ Countries of Origin

IOM, EU, and other migration professionals on a field visit in Nigeria to talk about AVRR and other topics

Mshelia Yakubu/IOM

In its Strategy on Voluntary Return and Reintegration, the European Commission sets out principles to increase the number of voluntary returns, make the return process more dignified, and provide better support to returnees. To make good on these goals, EU countries will need to improve their cooperation with migrants’ countries of origin. This policy brief explores opportunities to build this cooperation.

Policy Briefs

February 2021

Rewiring Migrant Returns and Reintegration after the COVID-19 Shock

IOM Belarus

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.

Reports

December 2020

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

Amanda Nero/IOM

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

International Organization for Migration

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

UN Photo/Rick Bajornas

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.

Featured

Moving Beyond Pandemic — A Podcast

Catch our new podcast, which examines the challenges facing the world as it seeks to restart travel and migration chilled by the COVID-19 pandemic. The repercussions of this dramatic halt to mobility will be profound, and will almost certainly lead to transformations that will reshape movement for the foreseeable future—maybe even permanently, as we explore.

Featured

Global Remittances Guide

Remittances are among the most tangible links between migration and development. International migrants are expected to remit more than $582 billion in earnings in 2015, of which $432 billion will flow to low- or middle-income countries. These multimedia maps visualize global remittance flows numerically or as a share of GDP.

Recent Activity

Policy Briefs February 2015 Improving Migrants' Labour Market Integration in Europe from the Outset: A Cooperative Approach to Predeparture Measures By Maria Vincenza Desiderio and Kate Hooper	Commentaries January 2015 The Field of Migration Studies Loses a Giant: Graeme Hugo By Demetrios G. Papademetriou
Multimedia December 16, 2014 A ‘Freer’ Flow of Skilled Labour within ASEAN: Aspirations, Opportunities, and Challenges in 2015 and Beyond	Policy Briefs December 2014 A ‘Freer’ Flow of Skilled Labour within ASEAN: Aspirations, Opportunities, and Challenges in 2015 and Beyond By Guntur Sugiyarto and Dovelyn Rannveig Mendoza
Commentaries December 2014 Protection at Sea: Addressing Irregular Maritime Migration By Kathleen Newland	Multimedia September 18, 2014 Integrating Migration into the Post-2015 United Nations Development Agenda
Policy Briefs September 2014 Integrating Migration into the Post-2015 United Nations Development Agenda By Lars Johan Lönnback	Fact Sheets July 2014 Select Diaspora Populations in the United States

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Reports October 2010 Mobilizing Diaspora Entrepreneurship for Development By Kathleen Newland	Reports September 2010 Diaspora Philanthropy: Private Giving and Public Policy By Kathleen Newland, Aaron Terrazas and Roberto Munster
Reports September 2010 Heritage Tourism and Nostalgia Trade: A Diaspora Niche in the Development Landscape By Kathleen Newland and Carylanna Taylor	Reports August 2010 Diaspora Investment in Developing and Emerging Country Capital Markets: Patterns and Prospects By Aaron Terrazas
Reports August 2010 Connected through Service: Diaspora Volunteers and Global Development By Aaron Terrazas	Reports June 2010 Migration's Middlemen: Regulating Recruitment Agencies in the Philippines-United Arab Emirates Corridor By Dovelyn Rannveig Mendoza
Books September 2009 Closing the Distance: How Governments Strengthen Ties with Their Diasporas	Policy Briefs October 2008 Managing Temporary Migration: Lessons from the Philippine Model By Dovelyn Rannveig Mendoza

Recent Activity

Policy Briefs

February 2015

Improving Migrants' Labour Market Integration in Europe from the Outset: A Cooperative Approach to Predeparture Measures

While there is growing consensus on the value of immigrant integration support prior to departure, such initiatives generally have not fully realized their potential. This policy brief reviews promising examples of predeparture measures for labor market integration in Europe that are jointly designed and/or run by origin- and destination-country actors, illustrating their potential to help effectively address some of the most stubborn obstacles to successful integration.

Commentaries

January 2015

The Field of Migration Studies Loses a Giant: Graeme Hugo

In a personal tribute published in the Migration Information Source, MPI's online journal, MPI President Emeritus Demetrios G. Papademetriou reflects on the life and career of Graeme Hugo, a world-renowned scholar and Director of the Australian Population and Migration Research Centre at the University of Adelaide, who died in January 2015.

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.

Policy Briefs

December 2014

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

Skilled labor migration is particularly important for developing countries seeking growth and looking to fill skills shortages. How can Member States of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) facilitate “freer” flows of skilled migration? This joint policy brief with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) explores the challenges and prospects for cooperation.

Commentaries

December 2014

Protection at Sea: Addressing Irregular Maritime Migration

Driven by rising migrant deaths in the Mediterranean, the Bay of Bengal, the Red Sea, and elsewhere, as well as by the challenges to border-control policies implicit in maritime migration, representatives of states, civil society, and international organizations gathered in December 2014 under the auspices of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees to discuss ways to limit the loss of life and foster international cooperation. This commentary explores the issues and challenges surrounding irregular maritime migration.

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. The issue brief highlights three areas that require specific attention: (1) fostering partnerships to promote development, (2) promoting and protecting migrants’ rights and well-being, and (3) reducing the costs and risks of human mobility.

Policy Briefs

September 2014

Integrating Migration into the Post-2015 United Nations Development Agenda

The Member States of the United Nations must negotiate a set of sustainable development goals (SDGs) that will frame a new international development agenda to replace the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that expire in 2015. This issue brief examines how migration can be integrated into the post-2015 development agenda, outlining proposed migration targets and elements for indicators within the SDGs.

Fact Sheets

July 2014

Select Diaspora Populations in the United States

MPI has produced profiles of 15 diaspora communities in the United States, gathering in one place key demographic data and analysis on diasporas from Bangladesh, Colombia, El Salvador, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Haiti, India, Kenya, Mexico, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Vietnam. The profiles examine population size, educational attainment, household income, employment patterns, geographic distribution, and remittance volume.

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The Migration Information Source’s twice-monthly free newsletter provides fresh thought, authoritative data, and global analysis of international migration and refugee trends.