No Poverty

In addition to the usual review of the recent world food and agriculture situation, each issue of The State of Food and Agriculture from 1957 has included one or more special studies of problems of longer-term interest. This year’s edition focuses on livestock production.

This report examines how pastoral mobility has been impacted by the creation of unnatural boundaries within landscapes and how societies cope with these constraints through legal or informal arrangements. There are many examples from around the world of efforts to facilitate transboundary movements and transboundary ecosystem management by pastoralists.

Global progress on the Sustainable Development Goals will depend to a large extent on the collective action of South Asia to implement them. The sub-region indeed accounts for almost one fourth of the world’s population, 36 per cent of the world’s poor and nearly half of the world’s malnourished children. The sub-region’s success in implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, however, hinges on addressing current capacity gaps and strengthening the means of implementation. Recognizing the host of challenges faced by the sub-region, UNESCAP has attempted in the present Report, to unpack the 2030 Agenda at the sub-regional level, outlining tangible, high priority and relevant policy actions that are critical to achieve sustainable development in South Asia. The Report identifies seven key priorities that can help accelerate the SDG achievement in South Asia by leveraging the relationships between the Goals. Based on rigorous policy simulations and evidence, it offers insight into ways a regionally coordinated sustainable industrialization strategy could generate more than 56 million new jobs by 2030 in South Asia, and lift 71 million additional people out of poverty, relative to a business-as-usual scenario. It is hoped that this Report will be useful for analysts and practitioners of development policy in the sub-region and beyond, in stimulating a debate on the ways and means of bringing sustainable prosperity to all in the dynamic and population subregion of South Asia.

Los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible (ODS), acordados por la comunidad internacional en 2015, representan un esfuerzo audaz por establecer una agenda mundial para el desarrollo que sea al tiempo equitativa y sostenible en términos sociales, económicos y ambientales. Los anteriores Objetivos de Desarrollo del Milenio (ODM) concedían prioridad a la reducción de la pobreza y a los avances en los indicadores sociales conexos. Los 17 objetivos recogidos en los ODS agregan a ese punto de partida una serie de resultados relacionados con la desigualdad, el desarrollo económico, el medio ambiente y el cambio climático, además de la paz y la seguridad. Los ODM incumbían principalmente a los países de ingresos medianos y bajos; en cambio, la ambiciosa agenda establecida en los ODS es necesariamente universal y atañe, por consiguiente, tanto a los países ricos como a los pobres.

The global number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) has reached an all-time high, as an increasing number of IDPs remain displaced for years or even decades. Tens of millions of IDPs are dependent on humanitarian assistance or live far below the poverty line in substandard housing without security of tenure, and with no or only limited access to basic services, education and health care. With durable solutions out of reach and facing barriers to leading self-sufficient lives, they are “left behind” despite the promises of the Sustainable Development Goals. In light of these alarming trends and the need for more effective response strategies, this OCHA-commissioned study offers a better understanding of protracted internal displacement and related challenges. The study finds that addressing protracted internal displacement is not a purely humanitarian concern, but rather a key development and political challenge, with humanitarian and, depending on the context, human rights, peace and security, and disaster risk reduction actors at all levels each having a distinct role to play. The study recommends that stakeholders focus on clear and measurable collective outcomes and the reduction of vulnerabilities of IDPs and host communities over time. This approach implicitly recognizes that IDPs should not have to wait until a conflict is fully resolved or all impacts of a disaster have ceased before they can begin rebuilding their lives and move towards self-sufficiency. Through this new approach, millions of IDPs and host communities could secure better access to livelihood opportunities, adequate housing with security of tenure and basic services. The study features five case studies: Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the Philippines, Somalia and Ukraine.

In addition to the usual review of the recent world food and agriculture situation, each issue of The State of Food and Agriculture from 1957 has included one or more special studies of problems of longer-term interest. This year's edition focuses on both incentives and disincentives for farmers in developing countries, as well as the management of fishery resources.

Desde 1978, el FNUAP publica su reporte anual en el que destaca los puntos mas recientes en el desarrollo de la población mundial. Nuevas actividades en la humanidad han alterado nuestro planeta a una escala sin precedentes. Este año, el Reporte señala que un número mayor de personas están utilizando mayores recursos con mas intensidad, lo que ha ido dejando una gran huella en el planeta, siendo esta mucho mayor que en años anteriores. La publicación examina también la interrelación entre las condiciones del medio ambiente, las tendencias en la población y las proyecciones para aliviar la carga de la pobreza en países en desarrollo. El Reporte ha encontrado además que el ampliar las oportunidades para la mujer y el asegurar sus derechos, son factores determinantes tanto para mejorar su bienestar por el impacto que ocasiona en el crecimiento poblacional como para la protección de su mundo natural.

In addition to the usual review of the recent world food and agriculture situation, each issue of The State of Food and Agriculture from 1957 has included one or more special studies of problems of longer-term interest. This year’s edition focuses on forest development and policy dilemmas.

Los nuevos datos del SOFI 2018 confirman un aumento del hambre en el mundo: el número de personas que padecen hambre ha crecido en los últimos tres años, volviendo a niveles de hace casi una década. Las múltiples formas de malnutrición son evidentes en muchos países: la obesidad en los adultos está creciendo incluso a pesar de que persisten formas de desnutrición. Los datos muestran que la variabilidad y los extremos climáticos se encuentran entre los factores clave de este incremento junto con el conflicto y las recesiones económicas, y amenazan con erosionar y revertir los avances logrados en la erradicación del hambre y la malnutrición. El SOFI 2018 revela nuevos desafíos en el camino hacia el Hambre Cero, al tiempo que establece las acciones urgentes necesarias para lograr el objetivo para 2030.

In addition to the usual review of the recent world food and agriculture situation, each issue of The State of Food and Agriculture from 1957 has included one or more special studies of problems of longer-term interest. This year’s edition focuses on food security.

Each year since 1978, UNFPA has issued a report highlighting new developments in population. Human activity is altering the planet on an unprecedented scale, the report points out. More people are using more resources with more intensity and leaving a bigger footprint on the earth than ever before. This report examines the close links between environmental conditions, population trends and prospects for alleviating poverty in developing countries. It finds that expanding women’s opportunities and ensuring their reproductive health and rights are critically important, both to improve the well-being of growing human populations and to protect the natural world.

Les personnes les plus affectées par les changements climatiques seront les groupes vulnérables, dont les femmes. Quel effet a la dynamique de la population sur les gaz à effet de serre et les changements climatiques? L’urbanisation et le vieillissement de la population vont-ils aider ou entraver les efforts d’adaptation au réchauffement de la planète? Et de meilleurs soins de santé reproductive, ainsi que l’amélioration des rapports entre femmes et hommes, pourraient-ils faire une différence dans la lutte contre les changements climatiques? Il est nécessaire de recadrer le débat sur les changements climatiques, en plaçant la population en son centre. A moins que les politiques en matière de climat ne la prennent en considération, elles ne réussiront pas à atténuer les changements climatiques ni à protéger les groupes vulnérables de leurs impacts, qui pourraient s’avérer catastrophiques.

In addition to the usual review of the recent world food and agriculture situation, each issue of The State of Food and Agriculture from 1957 has included one or more special studies of problems of longer-term interest. This year’s edition focuses on energy and agriculture.

In addition to the usual review of the recent world food and agriculture situation, each issue of The State of Food and Agriculture from 1957 has included one or more special studies of problems of longer-term interest. This year’s edition focuses on financing agricultural development.

This study aims primarily to describe the effects of the 2014 offensive, bearing in mind the conditions created by the blockade and previous offensives, on the health and well-being of adults (18+ years of age) living in Gaza. The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) conducted the study, with technical assistance from the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) and the Institute of Community and Public Health (ICPH), analyzing data from the living conditions report survey carried out in the Gaza Strip and West Bank between March and May 2015.

El Estado de la Población Mundial es un informe anual publicado por el Fondo de Población de las Naciones Unidas (UNFPA). Cada edición cubre y analiza los desarrollos y las tendencias de la población mundial y la demografía, y hace énfasis en regiones específicas, países y grupos de población y los desafíos únicos que enfrentan.

A great change is coming over childhood in the world’s richest countries. Today’s rising generation is the first in which a majority are spending a large part of early childhood in some form of out-of-home child care. At the same time, neuroscientific research is demonstrating that loving, stable, secure, and stimulating relationships with caregivers in the earliest months and years of life are critical for every aspect of a child’s development. Taken together, these two developments confront public and policymakers in countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) with urgent questions. Whether the child care transition will represent an advance or a setback for today’s children and tomorrow’s world, will depend on the response.

À l’heure actuelle, aucun pays ne peut se prévaloir d’être entièrement inclusif et de garantir à chacun une protection et des perspectives égales, ainsi que le plein exercice de ses droits fondamentaux — pas même les pays considérés comme les plus riches et les plus développés. Parmi les droits de l’homme reconnus par la communauté internationale comme essentiels au bienêtre des individus figure le droit à la santé sexuelle et reproductive. Ce droit a été établi par 179 pays dans le Programme d’action de la Conférence internationale sur la population et le développement de 1994. Le Programme d’action affirme que le respect de la dignité et des droits individuels — y compris l’égalité des droits des femmes et des filles et l’accès universel aux soins de santé et aux droits sexuels et reproductifs — est nécessaire à la réalisation du développement durable. Toutefois, une grande partie de ces engagements ne sont toujours pas tenus. Certains des manquements les plus graves concernent les femmes et les filles qui souffrent déjà d’autres formes d’exclusion, et particulièrement de la pauvreté. Dans nombre de pays en développement, les femmes démunies se trouvant dans les 20 % inférieurs (quintile) de l’échelle de revenu, notamment celles qui vivent en milieu rural, ont bien moins de chances d’accéder à des contraceptifs et à des soins lors de la grossesse et de l’accouchement que les femmes plus aisées vivant en ville.

Effective and efficient housing management is important to support the implementation of key UN agreements, including the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the New Urban Agenda and the Geneva UN Charter on Sustainable Housing. Efficient housing management results in economic benefits and decent housing conditions for inhabitants of condominiums. Housing management, through housing refurbishment programmes, protects the environment and contributes to decrease in greenhouse gas emissions, which supports the efforts of governments and stakeholders to address climate change.

The Report offers new insights into the nature and magnitude of the pressing social problems and the national and international policies required to address them. It examines the core social issues of poverty alleviation, productive employment and social integration covering concepts and quantitative indicators, as well as policies and strategies.

This annual flagship publication seeks to both analyze routinely monitored economic and social variables in the Arab region in a global context as well as address debt sustainability and the macroeconomic implications. Given that the COVID-19 pandemic will have significant repercussions in 2021 and beyond, it is crucial to understand how Arab countries are dealing with the economic impact of the virus. The report sets out two scenarios: a baseline scenario projecting that the economy will rebound in the first quarter of 2021; and a pessimistic scenario in which the crisis will persist throughout the first quarter of 2021. However, given considerable advancements in research on COVID-19 vaccines, an economic rebound should be expected no later than the second quarter of 2021.

This publication offers a wide-ranging perspective on indigenous peoples’ rights to lands, territories and resources, examining legislation and agreements at the national and international level, identifying successful practices and continued obstacles, and suggesting ways forward. Adopted in 2007, the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples positions the right to self-determination and collective rights to lands, territories and resources at its core. Previously two of the most politically charged issues under negotiation, the right to self-determination and the right to natural resources on indigenous lands and territories remain politicized more than 10 years later. Specifically addressed in Articles 25 through 32, indigenous peoples’ relationship to their land, territory and resources is at the heart of their identity, well-being and culture, while preservation of the environment, transmitted through generations of traditional knowledge, is at the center of their existence. As the world increasingly recognizes the negative impacts of climate change and environmental degradation to health, food security and overall peace and security, the importance of indigenous knowledge and territorial rights is becoming more widely acknowledged. Moreover, the 2030 Agenda’s integrated approach to economic, environmental and social development within a human rights framework gives space to demonstrate how indigenous stewardship of lands, territories and resources can achieve accelerated action towards implementation of several Sustainable Development Goals.

To take further the methodological work and develop recommendations to countries on data disaggregation with particular focus to poverty measurement, the Conference of European Statisticians established a task force, which worked through 2018 and 2019 to develop the present Guide. The task force consisted of 30 statistical experts from UNECE member countries, other countries participating in the work of the Conference of European Statisticians, international organizations and academia. It builds on the UNECE Guide on Poverty Measurement published in 2017. The Guide’s recommendations aim to improve national poverty statistics by ensuring better availability of disaggregated data for measuring poverty in alignment with international standards. The publication mainly targets national statistical authorities and provides useful information for policymakers, researchers and other users of poverty data.

Focusing on population dynamics, household composition, family formation, housing conditions, health, COVID-19, education, labour, poverty, inequality and culture and social participation, this report presents a broad illustration of Arab society and the ways in which it is changing. Data have been drawn primarily from the national statistical offices of ESCWA Member States. They have been supplemented by publicly accessible data from international agencies such as the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the World Health Organization, the International Labour Organization, the World Bank and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

L'objectif principal de cette étude est de mettre en lumière la situation critique à Gaza en estimant les coûts du blocus et des opérations de l'armée israélienne. La première partie de l'étude utilise deux trajectoires de croissance contrefactuelles pour Gaza, pour donner une indication sur l'ampleur de la croissance économique potentielle non réalisée qui aurait pu être réalisée si le blocus de Gaza et les opérations militaires n'avaient pas eu lieu pendant la période 2007-2018. La deuxième partie de l'étude applique des méthodes quantitatives pour estimer le taux de pauvreté et l'écart de pauvreté. Cela permet d'évaluer l'impact du blocus et des opérations militaires sur le bien-être des ménages à Gaza. L'étude contient également un ensemble de recommandations à l'intention de la puissance occupante, des décideurs politiques palestiniens, de la communauté internationale et des agences de développement concernant la nécessité de mettre fin au blocus de Gaza et d'atténuer son lourd impact.

The Investment Policy Review (IPR) of Seychelles assesses the country’s legal, regulatory and institutional framework for investment. This includes the analysis of FDI-specific regulations (investment laws, sectoral investment regulations and international investment agreements), and also general regulatory and operational aspects affecting both domestic and foreign investors (such as issues related to tax policy, competition, trade, environmental protection, business operations, intellectual property etc.). The IPR provides concrete policy recommendations to foster economic diversification, private sector development as well as institutional development and capacity building.

The Review provides an in-depth analysis and update on developments in seaborne trade, the maritime industry and markets, key performance indicators, and the legal and regulatory environment. The 2020 issue counts on a number of novel data sets that help analyse the performance of seaports in terms of productivity and connectivity, as well as the world fleet in terms of emissions. It provides a thorough review of the impact and implications that the COVID-19 pandemic has on ports and the maritime businesses, and how the industry has responded. It includes a number of testimonies from industry and government stakeholders to share experiences and good practices of responses to the pandemic.

The report presents a new UNCTAD tool aimed at fostering the effective implementation of investment policy review recommendations at country level. The objective of this document is twofold: it aims to explore some of the policy tools, strategies and mechanisms put in place by countries to advance investment policy reforms, and to highlight practices and initiatives which could be successfully replicated. The study also presents a new interactive tool developed by UNCTAD – the Live implementation matrix. The tool will assist countries to keep track of the progress made in implementing the recommendations of UNCTAD’s Investment Policy Reviews (IPRs), and to better support them in achieving their sustainable development objectives.

Disability-inclusive employment has yet to be achieved in the Asia-Pacific region, home to 472 million working-age persons with disabilities. Employment data concerning persons with disabilities are scarce across countries in the region. Where such data do exist, persons with disabilities - especially women, youth, and rural habitants among them - are found to fare worse than those without in the labor market. Disability at a Glance 2021: The Shaping of Disability-inclusive Employment in Asia and the Pacific seeks to equip ESCAP members and associate members with updated information and insights on promoting employment for persons with disabilities in the region, through snapshots of the latest figures, trends, policy developments, and inspirational practices.

This volume investigates the status of regional integration in Southern Africa. It discusses the critical challenges to be overcome and surveys the most interesting opportunities for achieving deeper regional integration. The publication is divided into in three parts. The first is on structural transformation and the role of regional integration; the second is on the enablers of regional integration; and the third consists of case studies on regional value chains.

Drawing on the 2019 revision of World Population Prospects, the World Population Ageing 2019 (Highlights) document global and regional trends in population ageing, including consideration of the implications of these trends for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. The report also presents various concepts and indicators related to population ageing and discusses related fiscal and economic implications.

Prepared in the context of the process of Myanmar’s graduation from LDC status, this publication document contains insights into the particular vulnerabilities or fragilities of the country and the implications of these disadvantages. The profile helps national authorities understand the critical relationship between the need for resilience-building action, and LDC status as a basis for eligibility for special support to this action. It is organized around four pillars: (i) a situation analysis; (ii) identification of key areas of vulnerability; (iii) evaluation of the consequences of identified vulnerabilities; and (iv) identification of structures and features of the economy that are critical for a sustainable graduation and for reducing existing vulnerabilities. Topics covered include the socio-economic impact of COVID-19, pervasive informality, inequalities and gender issues.

Continuing the thread of the 2019 and 2020 Human Development Reports (HDRs), the 2021/2022 HDR carries forward a conversation centered on inequalities while integrating other important themes related to uncertainties in the Anthropocene: societal-level transformations, mental health impacts, political polarization, but also, crucially, opportunity. The Report explores how uncertainty in the Anthropocene is changing, what is driving it, what it means for human development, and how we can thrive in spite of it. The Report argues that, in the end, doubling down on human development is central to a more prosperous future for all.

International trade and investment have been indispensable engines of economic growth in Asia and the Pacific and remain essential means of implementation for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. However, this economic growth has come with significant social and environmental costs, including the rapidly worsening climate crisis. This report is focused on how “climate-smart” trade and investment-related policies can help address climate change, taking into account the on-going COVID-19 pandemic. The links between trade, investment and climate change are complex. The key is to ensure that the positive effects of trade and investment are maximized, such as by promoting trade and investment in renewable energy and low-carbon technologies, while the negative effects are minimized, such as by digitalizing trade and transport systems. Putting a price on carbon and eliminating fossil fuel subsidies remain fundamental elements on which urgent progress need to be made if trade and investment are to become more sustainable. As key trade partners seriously consider putting in place border taxes on carbon to address carbon leakages and loss of competitiveness induced by domestic carbon pricing policies, economies in the region not taking steps towards reducing emissions risk being pushed out of key markets. While implementing climate-smart policies may come at a cost in terms of required additional investments, particularly for emission-intensive sectors and economies, the cost of inaction is far greater. The roll-out of COVID-19 recovery packages may provide opportunities to invest in low-carbon technologies and sectors, opportunities that should not be missed in light of the urgency for action.

This report focuses on how multidimensional poverty has declined. It provides a comprehensive picture of global trends in multidimensional poverty, covering 5 billion people. It probes patterns between and within countries and by indicator, showcasing different ways of making progress. Together with data on the $1.90 a day poverty rate, the trends monitor global poverty in different forms. This is a key moment to study how nonmonetary poverty goes down. It is 10 years before 2030, the due date of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), whose first goal is to end poverty in all its forms everywhere. And it is a year when a pandemic and economic slowdown are pushing many more into poverty, while the spectre of racism still haunts, and environmental threats such as locusts surge. Multidimensional poverty is strongly associated with other SDG challenges. Concentrated in rural areas, multidimensionally poor people tend to experience lower vaccination rates and secondary school achievement, insecure work and greater environmental threats. By detailing the connections between the MPI and other poverty-related SDGs, the report highlights how the lives of multidimensionally poor people are precarious in ways that extend beyond the MPI’s 10 component indicators. The COVID-19 pandemic unfolded in the midst of this analysis. While data are not yet available to measure the rise of global poverty after the pandemic, simulations based on different scenarios suggest that, if unaddressed, progress across 70 developing countries could be set back 3–10 years.

This report presents a compact update on the state of multidimensional poverty (henceforth referred to as “poverty”) in the world. It compiles data from 110 developing countries covering 6.1 billion people, accounting for 92 percent of the population in developing countries. It tells an important and persistent story about how prevalent poverty is in the world and provides insights into the lives of poor people, their deprivations and how intense their poverty is—to inform and accelerate efforts to end poverty in all its forms. As still only a few countries have data from after the COVID-19 pandemic, the report urgently calls for updated multidimensional poverty data. And while providing a sobering annual stock take of global poverty, the report also highlights examples of success in every region.

Zambia belongs to the least developed countries' (LDCs) and landlocked developing countries’ (LLDCs) groups. The country has made socioeconomic progress in some areas, but still exhibits many of the challenges afflicting LDCs in general. Zambia’s economy remains significantly dependent on the mining and export of copper. This has left the economy vulnerable to fluctuations in the copper price and highly exposed to external shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Zambia’s economy is furthermore characterized by weak productive capacities and lack of structural economic transformation. UNCTAD prepares National Productive Capacities Gap Assessments (NPCGA) to provide support to graduating LDCs, following the inclusion of the Productive Capacities Index (PCI) in the graduation monitoring process, in view of developing their smooth transition strategies. The NPCGA examines Zambia’s socioeconomic challenges, opportunities, and prospects. It identifies comparative advantages of the country and key binding constraints to socioeconomic development. It recommends a series of pragmatic and forward-looking policy actions at domestic level together with international support measures (ISMs) aimed at fostering productive capacities and achieving structural economic transformation. The ultimate objective of NPCGA is to enable Zambia to graduate with momentum from the LDC category and to realize its ambition to become a prosperous middle-income nation by 2030.

El Índice de Pobreza Multidimensional (IPM) global elaborado por el Programa de las Naciones Unidas para el Desarrollo (PNUD) y la Iniciativa de Pobreza y Desarrollo Humano de Oxford mide la pobreza considerando varias privaciones experimentadas por las personas en su vida diaria, incluida la mala salud, la educación insuficiente y un bajo nivel de vivir. Este informe examina el nivel y la composición de la pobreza multidimensional en 109 países que cubren a 5900 millones de personas y presenta un desglose por etnia/raza/casta para 41 países con información disponible.

Cette étude traite de la fuite des recettes fiscales palestiniennes vers Israël et fournit des données réactualisées concernant les sources desdites pertes. Elle explique que les coûts fiscaux font partie des coûts économiques globaux causés par l'occupation et se composent de deux éléments dont les fuites fiscales palestiniennes vers Israël dans le cadre du Protocole de Paris relatif aux Relations économiques, et également d'autres pertes fiscales qui ne sont pas reçues en Israël mais sont causées par des politiques et mesures imposées de par l'occupation prolongée.

Competition and market access challenges are being faced by Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) around the world as they seek to deal with the impact of COVID-19 on their operations. This publication is prepared within the Development Account project on COVID 19 and the resurgence of SMEs.

There is perhaps no stronger evidence of the pressing need to redesign our global system than the fact that a global health crisis doubled the wealth of the 10 richest men in the world while sending upwards of 120 million people into extreme poverty. This UNRISD Flagship Report shows how inequalities and crises reinforce and compound each other, leading to extreme disparity, vulnerability and unsustainability. It argues that this is not the result of a broken system but one in which inequality and injustice are built in by design. The social contract has unravelled to the great detriment of people and planet. The report associates the multiple crises and increasing inequalities we are facing with policy choices promoted during the age of neoliberal hyperglobalization. It unpacks the implications for sustainable development and for disadvantaged social groups through the lenses of intersectionality and power. To address inequality, break the cycle of multiple and interlocking crises, and work toward a more equal, just and sustainable future, the report proposes the creation of a new eco-social contract and a policy approach based on alternative economies, transformative social policies, and reimagined multilateralism and strengthened solidarities.

The race to net zero focuses on three key sectors from which greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced and how this can be done. It considers how the energy sector can end its dependency on coal and phase out other fossil fuels; how to support low-carbon mobility and logistics; and how international trade and investment can help accelerate the transition of the region’s industries to a low-carbon future. Concrete proposals are made as to how these major shifts can be financed and how better to measure challenges and progress. The proposals are grounded in regional cooperation. The present report presents recommendations on building regional frameworks or partnerships on green power corridor, low-carbon transport, and a low-carbon and climate-smart transition, and collaborating on policies for climate-smart trade and investment, climate finance and monitoring.

This year’s report focuses on the lives of migrant women. Every year millions of women working overseas send hundreds of millions of dollars in remittances back to their homes and communities. These funds go to feed and educate children, provide health care, build homes, foster small businesses and generally improve living standards for loved ones left behind. For host countries, the labour of migrant women is so embedded in the fabric of society that it goes virtually unnoticed. Migrant women toil in the households of working families, soothe the sick and comfort the elderly. They contribute their technical and professional expertise, pay taxes and quietly support a quality of life that many take for granted.

Migration is an expanding global reality, one that allows millions of people to seek new opportunities. But it also involves challenges for migrants and for societies, both in areas of origin and of destination. This report analyses migratory flows – internal and international – and how they are linked to processes of economic development, demographic change, and natural-resource pressure. The focus is on rural migration, the many forms it takes and the important role it plays in both developing and developed countries. The report investigates the drivers and impacts of rural migration and highlights how related policy priorities depend on country contexts that are in continuous evolution.