Migration
Conclusions and policy implications
The mass displacement of Ukrainians and others across borders and within the country, in response to the full-scalle invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and the ongoing war, triggered an unprecedented refugee protection response.
Acknowledgements
The present publication was produced by the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) under the supervision and guidance of Mounir Tabet, Deputy Executive Secretary.
Gender equality and international migration
Women are active participants in migration, both within and between countries.
Unaccompanied children often travel unprepared and face heightened vulnerabilities during their journeys
Unaccompanied migrant children (UMCs) migrate along all three routes, especially along the Eastern Route, where IOM recorded 15,300 unaccompanied children in 2023, representing over a third of all children recorded that year (IOM, 2024b).
Introduction
At no time in human history have as many women been on the move as today.
The Northern route (2022–2023)
RDH expanded its research portfolio to the Northern Route in 2022 to provide a more nuanced understanding of Ethiopian, Eritrean and Sudanese migrants’ profiles along this route, how they make their decisions to migrate, the drivers of their migration and the experiences and needs of vulnerable groups on this route.
The nature of migrants’ return and reintegration experiences matters, as negative consequences can affect both returnees and their households
Migrants return to their countries of origin for a variety of reasons ranging from voluntary return, reconsidering migration while in transit for reasons such as illness, running out of money to continue their journeys, to forced return from transit or destination countries (see Key Message 3).
Migration, poverty reduction and sustainable development
The migration-development nexus incorporates two elements: the ways in which development processes, including development assistance, can reduce pressures for unwanted migration, particularly irregular movements of people, and the ways in which migrants can be a resource for poverty reduction and sustainable development in their home communities. Gender inequalities in countries of origin interact with these elements: women and men are differentially affected by development strategies (Chant and Radcliffe, 1992), and women and men may differ in the ways or in the extent to which they act as resources for development.
Migration drivers are multilayered, interconnected and context-dependent
Migration decisions are complex and underpinned by an interplay of factors rather than a single driver that is triggering movements.
Introduction
Migration routes are specific geographic paths along which various types of migrants on the move travel in significant numbers to reach certain areas of intended destination.
Note
Symbols of United Nations documents are composed of capital letters combined with figures.
Migrants face severe challenges when attempting irregular journeys, due to the harsh conditions and high risk of abuse and exploitation along these long-distance routes and their reliance on smugglers
RDH data collected along all three routes show that when migrants engage in irregular migration, most do so in full awareness that the course of their journey is unpredictable, and they may experience adverse situations en route that are outside of their control.
Health and HIV/AIDS
Migration can profoundly affect the health and well-being of both stay-at-home and migrating women.
Executive summary
In its resolutions 54/210 of 22 December 1999 and 58/206 of 23 December 2003 the General Assembly requested the Secretary-General to update the World Survey on the Role of Women in Development for consideration by the General Assembly during its fifty-ninth session.
Executive summary
Migration is driven by a complex and multilayered set of factors that vary across regions. Macro-level drivers such as poverty, conflict or environmental challenges intersect with individual and sometimes collective motivations, including aspirations for better living standards or educational opportunities (see Key Message 1).
Programmatic implications
The following programmatic implications draw on the 10 key findings presented in this report to provide actionable insights for effectively promoting a route-based approach to migration management and humanitarian and development responses that address the drivers of migration, risks and conditions at different stages along the journey.
Migration networks are crucial in facilitating movements along established routes
Migration networks are defined in migration literature as “ties that connect migrants, former migrants and non-migrants in origin and destination areas through bonds of kinship, friendship and shared community origin” (Massey et al., 1993).
Refugees and displaced persons
While a majority of female migrants move voluntarily for family or work purposes, a smaller number have been forced to leave their homes as a result of conflict, repression, human rights violations, political instability and similar factors.
Family and labour migration
The vast majority of international migrants are considered to have moved voluntarily from one country to another.
Remittances and migration success narratives spark aspirations and encourage decisions to migrate
Although migration drivers are often perceived as negative forces triggering decisions to move, some positive drivers also influence migration narratives, and decisions and it is important to highlight the continuum of both individual and collective agency that exists in mobility decision-making processes and the resilience migrants and their households demonstrate.
Acknowledgements
This publication was written by Naomi Burnett, Laura Nistri and Costanza Rodotà from the DTM Global Team.
Conclusion
A route-based approach is a holistic method of understanding and managing migration movements.
Overview of the main EHoA migratory routes
The table below provides an overview of the main characteristics of the three main interregional migration routes in the EHoA.
Acknowledgements
In preparation of the World Survey on the Role of Women in Development, collaboration was maintained with members of the United Nations Inter-Agency Network on Women and Gender Equality (IANWGE), including, inter alia, the International Labour Organization; the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS; the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights; Population Division of the United Nations Department for Economic and Social Affairs; the Statistics Division of the United Nations Department for Economic and Social Affairs; the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees; and the United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime.
Conclusions and the way forward
The World Survey on the Role of Women in Development: Women and International Migration has outlined the growth in international migration, the important role of women migrants and the need for gender perspectives on the causes and consequences of these movements.
Other national legislative and administrative actions on cross-border movements
As of 2018, 14 African countries, 6 Asia-Pacific countries, 10 Western and European countries, and 5 Latin American and Caribbean countries referred to climate and environmental considerations in their national migration legislations, policies or strategies (IOM, 2018b:6). Most references pertain to the recognition of environmental factors, including climate change, disasters and environmental degradation, as drivers of migration, displacement and/or planned relocation. In some cases, migration is explicitly considered a potential adaptation or coping strategy to the adverse effects of climate change, especially through measures such as resettlement, labour migration and planned relocation. In addition, a few laws, policies or strategies articulate specific measures to address human mobility in the context of climate change, including protection standards, free movement protocols, visa-free and visa-waivers travel, work permits and labour migration schemes.
Impacts of climate change on human mobility
According to a recent study, the number of people affected by extreme weather events has increased over the past decades, while the risk of being killed in the aftermath of such a disaster is drastically reduced compared to earlier times, resulting in much smaller absolute numbers of deaths. Whereas in 1900–1950, around 520,000 people lost their lives annually due to disasters; in 2010–2020, 60,000 people per year were killed (0.33%) (Czaika and Münz, 2022).
Introduction
This report focuses on the intersection of environmental change with movements into the European Union from Central Asia. It contributes to a growing body of literature on migration in the context of climate and environmental changes, including movements affected by the slow- and sudden-onset impacts of climate change. The report identifies new trends in migration affecting the European Union and Central Asia and discusses the current state of legal and policy responses to these movements. It helps countries in the European Union and Central Asia fulfil commitments made in the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (hereafter the Global Compact for Migration) related to understanding the drivers of migration in the context of climate and environmental changes. The recommendations made in the report should also help European and Central Asian governments to develop policies that will enable them to respond to these movements more effectively.
Legal and policy frameworks for responding to migration in the context of climate and environmental changes
The vast majority of migrants in the context of climate and environmental changes will move within the borders of their own country (World Bank, 2022a). A smaller but often more visible proportion of people will cross international borders (ibid.). The policy frameworks differ between these two forms of mobility – internal and cross-border. This section first outlines universal human rights afforded to all people on the move. Then, more specific frameworks are discussed in relation to internal and cross-border movements. This brief review of policy frameworks is not meant to be comprehensive. Rather, it sets the context for understanding those that are relevant to Central Asia and the areas of destination of cross-border movements.
Findings and recommendations
This report focuses on the environmental drivers of migration in and from Central Asia. As detailed in the World Bank Groundswell report, most mobility due to climate and other environmental changes will precipitate internal movements, including anticipatory migration, displacement and planned relocation. Considering the wide and cross-cutting impacts of climate change, cross-border movements within and beyond the region cannot, however, be excluded.
Vue d’ensemble du rapport : La migration continue d’être un élément de solution dans un monde en évolution rapide, mais des défis majeurs subsistent
Plus de deux années se sont écoulées depuis la publication du Rapport État de la migration dans le monde 2022, qui fournissait une vue d’ensemble des changements mondiaux entraînant d’importantes répercussions sur les migrations et les déplacements dans le monde.
Improving mechanisms for access to adequate housing
Once asylum seekers are granted refugee status or subsidiary protection, they are required to leave their temporary accommodation/reception centres and this within a short time frame: two months in Belgium, 28 days in the United Kingdom, 15 days in Slovenia, and 14 days in Bulgaria.
Séance de bienvenue et discours liminaires
Dans son allocution d’ouverture, Amy Pope, Directrice générale de l’OIM, a commencé par rappeler qu’il importait de prendre des mesures d’urgence contre le changement climatique et la mobilité climatique, de façon à empêcher les déplacements massifs de population imputables aux catastrophes climatiques.
Migración y migrantes: Características y novedades regionales
En el capítulo anterior se presentó un panorama general de la migración en el mundo, en relación con las poblaciones de migrantes y los flujos migratorios internacionales.