The International Organisation for Migration (IOM), the UN Migration Agency, launched its flagship publication, the World Migration Report 2018, during the 108th IOM Council, in Geneva in November 2017.The report is the ninth in IOM’s World Migration Report (WMR) series and the first since IOM became the UN Migration Agency. Since 2000, IOM has been producing world migration reports to contribute to increased understanding of migration throughout the world.
The World Migration Report 2018project commenced in September 2016 and the report refers to data or events before June 2017.
The 2018 report
*presents current migration issues in a two-part structure, combining an overarching presentation of current migration dynamics with in-depth analyses of complex and emerging issues that have been shaping human mobility;
*includes chapters that delve into themes such as transnational connectivity, media reporting on migrants and migration, extremism and social exclusion;
*has the largest chapter delves into regional dimensions and developments and explores key features, such as intra-regional migration, internal and international displacement, labour migration and remittances, migrant smuggling and human trafficking, integration and irregular migration; and
*calls for greater recognition of the many interconnections in the analysis and policymaking on migration.
Importance of the report
The report is seen as significant because
*it shows how population grows in many parts of the world and it also contributes to reversing the population decline in some countries;
*international migration is a critical concern for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; and
*it uses the migration term in a broader sense and takes into account anyone living in a country other their own (includes refugees and economic migrants, those who immigrate officially and who do so irregularly).
Highlights of the 2018 report
The highlights of the report are as follows:
*globally, 3.4 percent of the population are international migrants i.e., those who live in a country other than the country where they were born
*total percentage of male immigrants in 2015, 52 percent andfemales, 48 percent
*globally, an estimated 258 million people live in a country other than their country of birth (increase of 49 per cent since 2000); some 64 per cent of them in high-income countries
*Indian diaspora–largest in the world (17 million); followed by Mexico (13 million), Russia (11 million), China (10 million), Bangladesh (7 million), Pakistan and Ukraine (6 million), Plippinnes and Syria and UK in that order
*Asia and Europe :biggest sources of migrants (31 percent each)
*one in every 30 people: an international migrant
*migration contributed 42 percent of population growth in North America; 31 percent in Oceania (between 2000 and 2015)
* USA: the top destination for migrants in the world; followed by Germany, Russia, Saudi Arabia, UK, UAE, Canada, France, Australia and Spain in that order
*those under 18 years of age made up 51 percent of refugees in 2016.
*in 2016, the top five remittance recipient countries (remittances being financial or in-kind transfers made by migrants directly to families or communities in their countries of origin):
India and China(total inward remittances exceeding USD 60 billion for each country) followed by Philippines, Mexico and Pakistan (in descending order)
*by the end of 2016, a total of 22.5 million refugees, with 17.2 million under UNHCR’s mandate and 5.3 million refugees registered by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East
*some 2.8 million people seeking international protection and awaiting determination of their refugee status (asylum seekers); of the roughly 2 million first-instance applications for asylum lodged in 2016, Germany remained top recipient (over 720,000 applications) followed by USA (262,000) and Italy (123,000)
On India
The report noted the following details vis-à-vis India.
*As of 2017, 17 million Indians live outside the country (at least 5 million in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia and 2 million in USA).
*The largest migration corridor is from India to UAE, where 3.5 million Indians were residing in 2015.
*The Indian diaspora constitutes 6 per cent of the total number of international migrants (people living outside the country of their birth)—estimated at 243 million.
*The number of the migrants from other countries living in India is 5.2 million, a fall of 1.22 million from 2000.
About IOM
TheInternational Organisation for Migration
*was established in 1951 as Intergovernmental Committee for European Migration (ICEM) to help resettle people;
*works in four broad areas of migration management: migration and development, facilitating migration, regulating migration and forced migration; and
* has 166 member states, a further eight states holding observer status and offices in over 100 countries.