Published by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), comprehensively analyzes global migration patterns, trends, and challenges. This twelfth edition highlights the complex dynamics of human mobility, emphasizing its role in driving economic growth and human development while addressing the pressing challenges of displacement, inequality, and climate change.

Key Findings

• Migration Trends: By the end of 2022, there were 281 million international migrants globally. Displacement due to conflict, violence, and disasters reached a record high of 117 million people, including 71.2 million internally displaced individuals and 35.4 million refugees.
• Economic Impact: International remittances grew significantly between 2000 and 2022, surging from $128 billion to $831 billion—a 650% increase. Of this, $647 billion was sent to low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), surpassing foreign direct investment in these regions and becoming a critical development driver.
• Challenges: The report underscores growing migration-related inequalities, misinformation about migration, and the politicization of migration issues. It also highlights the urgent need for safer and more regular migration pathways.

Emerging Issues

1. Climate Change and Food Security: The intersection of environmental factors with migration is increasingly evident as climate-related disasters displace millions annually.
2. Gender and Migration: The report explores gender-specific migration trends and gaps, emphasizing the need for gender-sensitive policies.
3. Post-Pandemic Mobility: While COVID-19 disrupted global mobility, migration has rebounded, showcasing its resilience as a key development driver.

Policy Implications

Calls for evidence-based policymaking to address migration challenges effectively. It advocates for collaborative efforts to harness migration’s potential for global prosperity while ensuring migrants’ rights and safety. Bangladesh’s role as a champion country in promoting safe and orderly migration was highlighted during the report’s launch.

Overview

Chapter 2 – Migration and migrants: A global overview

Examines global migration trends, patterns, and statistics, highlighting diverse migrant experiences and key drivers. This foundational chapter sets up later discussions on migration’s implications and governance.

1. Global Migration Trends: Discusses the current state of international migration, including the small percentage of migrants worldwide. It also examines the demographic characteristics of migrants, such as age, gender, and nationality.
2. Drivers of Migration: Examines key drivers like economic factors, conflicts, environment, and social ties, showing how these interconnected elements shape migration decisions.
3. Migration Patterns: Analyzes the geographical distribution of migrants, noting significant trends in regions with high levels of migration, such as North America, Europe, and parts of Asia. It also discusses the rise of intra-regional migration and the importance of understanding regional dynamics.
4. Impact of Migration: Explores migration’s social, economic, and cultural impacts on sending and receiving countries. It highlights migrants’ contributions to economies and societies and the challenges they may face, including discrimination and integration issues.
5. Policy Implications: Underscores the need for effective migration governance and policies that address the complexities of migration while ensuring the protection of migrants’ rights and well-being.

Chapter 3 – Migration and migrants: Regional dimensions and developments

Examines migration patterns and policies across different regions, highlighting each area’s distinct characteristics and challenges. It emphasizes how regional contexts shape migration dynamics and the importance of tailored policy approaches.

1. Regional Migration Trends: Outlines specific migration trends within different regions, such as North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Latin America. It discusses the volume and types of migration occurring in these areas, including labor migration, forced displacement, and family reunification.
2. Drivers of Regional Migration: Examines the factors driving migration in each region, including economic disparities, political instability, environmental changes, and social networks. It emphasizes that regional contexts significantly influence migration dynamics.
3. Policy Frameworks: Analyzes the migration governance frameworks in different regions, highlighting formal and informal policies shaping migration flows. It discusses regional agreements and initiatives to facilitate safe and orderly migration and address challenges such as irregular migration and human trafficking.
4. Impact of Regional Developments: Explores how regional developments, such as economic integration and geopolitical shifts, affect migration patterns. It also considers the implications of regional crises, such as conflicts and natural disasters, on migration trends and the movement of people.

Chapter 4 – Growing migration inequality: What do the global data actually show?

Examines migration inequality through global data analysis, revealing disparities in experiences and access to opportunities. While migration offers benefits, access varies significantly across different groups. Calls for policymakers to address these inequalities and create more equitable migration systems.

1. Data Analysis on Migration Inequality: Presents a detailed examination of global migration data, highlighting disparities in migration flows, access to resources, and outcomes for different groups of migrants. It emphasizes the importance of disaggregating data by nationality, gender, age, and socioeconomic status to understand the nuances of migration inequality.
2. Barriers to Migration: Discusses the various barriers contributing to migration inequality, including restrictive immigration policies, economic constraints, and social factors. These barriers disproportionately affect specific populations, limiting their ability to migrate or access opportunities in destination countries.
3. Impact of Legal Status: Explores how legal status affects migrants’ experiences and opportunities. It highlights the challenges faced by irregular migrants, who often encounter exploitation, discrimination, and limited access to services compared to regular migrants.
4. Gender and Migration Inequality: Explores gender’s impact on migration, highlighting women’s unique challenges and vulnerabilities. It examines how gender norms shape migration patterns and the growing trend of female migration.
5. Consequences of Migration Inequality: Outlines the broader implications of migration inequality for individuals, families, and societies. It discusses how unequal access to migration opportunities can perpetuate cycles of poverty and limit social mobility for marginalized groups.
6. Policy Recommendations: Concludes with recommendations for addressing migration inequality, emphasizing the need for inclusive policies that promote equitable access to migration opportunities and protect the rights of all migrants, regardless of their status.

Chapter 5 – Migration and human security: Unpacking myths and examining new realities and responses

Examines migration and human security by challenging myths and exploring current realities. Views human security through migrants’ perspectives rather than just state interests. It advocates for policies that protect migrants’ rights while addressing their vulnerabilities.

1. Defining Human Security: Begins by defining human security in the context of migration, highlighting its multifaceted nature encompassing economic, social, and political dimensions. It stresses that human security is essential for the well-being of migrants and is a fundamental aspect of migration policy.
2. Myths about Migration: Debunks common migration myths, like migrants being a burden or causing insecurity. It shows how these false beliefs can harm policy-making and public attitudes toward migrants.
3. New Realities of Migration: Examines contemporary realities facing migrants amid recent global events—the COVID-19 pandemic, geopolitical conflicts, and climate change. It shows how these factors have intensified migrants’ vulnerabilities and demonstrated the need for a more nuanced understanding of migration and security.
4. Human Security Challenges: Outlines various challenges to human security that migrants encounter throughout the migration cycle, including risks during pre-departure, transit, entry, stay, and return phases. It emphasizes the importance of addressing these challenges to ensure the safety and dignity of migrants.
5. Policy Responses: Discusses the need for comprehensive policy responses prioritizing human security. It advocates for a rights-based approach to migration governance that protects the rights of migrants and addresses the root causes of insecurity.

Chapter 6 – Gender and migration: Trends, gaps and urgent action

Examines gender in migration, focusing on trends and gaps requiring urgent action. It shows how gender shapes migrant experiences and challenges, advocating for policies that address women migrants’ unique needs and promote their empowerment.

1. Gendered Migration Trends: Outlines the trends in migration patterns related to gender, noting that women constitute a significant portion of international migrants. It discusses the various forms of migration women engage in, including labor migration, family reunification, and forced migration due to conflict or environmental factors.
2. Vulnerabilities and Challenges: Examines women migrants’ key vulnerabilities like gender-based violence and discrimination, noting they face more significant barriers than men in accessing resources, legal protections, and support services.
3. Impact of Gender Norms: Examines how societal gender norms and expectations influence migration decisions and experiences. It discusses the role of cultural factors in shaping the opportunities available to women and the challenges they face in both origin and destination countries.
4. Gaps in Data and Research: Identifies significant gaps in data and research related to gender and migration. It calls for more comprehensive and disaggregated data collection to better understand the experiences of women migrants and inform policy responses.
5. Policy Recommendations: Provides recommendations for policymakers to address gender inequalities in migration. It advocates for integrating gender perspectives into migration policies and programs, ensuring that the specific needs and rights of women migrants are recognized and addressed.
6. Urgent Actions Needed: Stresses immediate action needed to protect women migrants, calling for governments, civil society, and international organizations to work together to ensure women’s safety and well-being throughout migration.

Chapter 7 – Climate change, food insecurity and human mobility: Interlinkages, evidence and action

Examines how climate change, food insecurity, and human mobility interconnect, affecting migration patterns globally. Climate change is highlighted as a key driver of human mobility, advocating for policies that address these challenges and protect vulnerable populations.

1. Understanding the Interlinkages: Begins by outlining how climate change and food insecurity are interconnected and how these factors influence human mobility. It discusses how environmental degradation, extreme weather events, and changing agricultural conditions can lead to displacement and migration.
2. Evidence of Climate-Induced Migration: Presents evidence and case studies demonstrating the impact of climate change on migration patterns. It highlights examples of communities forced to migrate due to environmental factors, such as rising sea levels, droughts, and natural disasters.
3. Vulnerabilities of Affected Populations: Emphasizes that specific populations are more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and food insecurity, particularly those in developing countries. It discusses how socioeconomic factors, such as poverty and lack of access to resources, exacerbate these vulnerabilities and influence migration decisions.
4. Policy Responses and Adaptation Strategies: Calls for comprehensive policy responses to address the challenges of climate change and food insecurity. It advocates for integrating migration considerations into climate adaptation strategies and food security policies, ensuring that the needs of affected populations are prioritized.
5. Role of International Cooperation: Highlights the importance of international cooperation in addressing the interlinkages between climate change, food insecurity, and migration. It discusses the need for collaborative efforts among governments, NGOs, and international organizations to develop effective solutions and support affected communities.

Chapter 8 – Towards a global governance of migration? From the 2005 Global Commission on International Migration to the 2022 International Migration Review Forum and beyond

Examines global migration governance from 2005 to 2022, focusing on the development from the Global Commission on International Migration (GCIM) to the International Migration Review Forum (IMRF). Analyzes key governance milestones while emphasizing the need for international cooperation to address migration challenges in our changing world.

1. Historical Context: Begins by providing a historical overview of migration governance, emphasizing the significance of the GCIM report in shaping international discussions on migration. It outlines how the GCIM laid the groundwork for subsequent initiatives and frameworks to improve migration governance.
2. The Global Compact for Migration: Discusses the adoption of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration in 2018, which marked a significant milestone in international migration governance. It highlights the Compact’s objectives and principles, emphasizing the need for cooperation among states to address migration challenges.
3. International Migration Review Forum (IMRF): Focuses on the IMRF held in 2022, which provided a platform for member states and stakeholders to assess progress towards the Global Compact’s objectives. It discusses the forum’s outcomes, including the unanimous adoption of a Progress Declaration reaffirming commitments to enhance migration governance.
4. Key Challenges: Identifies ongoing challenges in global migration governance, including differing national priorities, political resistance, and the need for a more inclusive approach that considers the voices of migrants and affected communities. It emphasizes the importance of addressing these challenges to achieve effective governance.
5. Regional Cooperation: Highlights the role of regional cooperation in migration governance, noting that regional frameworks can complement global efforts and address specific migration issues relevant to particular contexts. It discusses examples of regional initiatives that have successfully addressed migration challenges.

Chapter 9 – A post-pandemic rebound? Migration and mobility globally after COVID-19

Examines how COVID-19 impacted global migration and mobility, reshaping patterns and policies. It analyzes immediate pandemic effects and potential recovery while advocating for new governance approaches that protect migrants’ rights in an evolving landscape.

1. Immediate Impact of COVID-19: Begins by detailing the immediate disruptions caused by the pandemic, including widespread travel restrictions, border closures, and the halting of migration flows. It highlights how these measures affected various groups of migrants, including seasonal workers, refugees, and international students.
2. Changes in Migration Patterns: Analyzes pandemic-driven migration shifts, where some regions saw decreased migration while others experienced new patterns. Countries’ pandemic responses influenced their appeal to migrants, affecting inflows and outflows based on their COVID-19 management and economic stability.
3. Vulnerabilities Exposed: The pandemic exposed migrants’ vulnerabilities, from healthcare access issues to job instability. This particularly affected marginalized groups like women and low-skilled workers.
4. Policy Responses: Policy Responses: Countries implemented temporary migrant protections and adjusted immigration policies during the pandemic, highlighting the need for more inclusive and flexible policies to protect migrants in future crises.
5. Opportunities for Change: Identifies potential opportunities for a post-pandemic rebound in migration, emphasizing the importance of rethinking migration governance and policies. It advocates for a more holistic approach that recognizes the contributions of migrants to economies and societies.
6. Future of Mobility: Concludes with reflections on the future of migration and mobility in a post-pandemic world. It emphasizes the need for resilience in migration systems, the importance of international cooperation, and the potential for innovative solutions to address the challenges migrants face.

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