World Migration Report, 2024

Context (TH | NDTV): The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) released the World Migration Report 2024.
Since 2000, IOM has been producing its flagship world migration reports every two years.

Findings of the report

Top five remittance recipient countries: India, Mexico, China, the Philippines and France (2022).
Top country-to-country migration corridors: India — United Arab Emirates, India — U.S., India — Saudi Arabia and Bangladesh — India.
Largest destination countries for international mobile students: USA, UK, Australia, Germany and Canada.

In 2022, India received over $111 billion in remittances, the largest in the world, becoming the first country to reach and even surpass the $100 billion mark.
There has been a steady growth in remittances to India over the years.
India came in 13^th as the destination country for immigrants, with 4.48 million people coming from other countries to live in India
Nearly 18 million, or 1.3 percent of India’s population, are international migrants, making India the largest source of migrants globally.
Major Indian diasporas live in the United Arab Emirates, the United States, and Saudi Arabia.

According to the report, by 2050, over 216 million people across six continents are projected to move within their countries due to climate change.
Migration serves as a coping or adaptation strategy to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change.
Factors like political power, governance, and globalised food production also contribute to migration.

Libya: It faces challenges from the Arab Spring and water scarcity. Natural disasters like the ‘Medicane‘ Daniel in 2023 have further exacerbated challenges in Libya, particularly in cities like Derna.
Algeria & Morocco: Droughts and wildfires have led to significant displacements.
Nigeria: In 2022, it experienced the largest number of internal displacements due to disasters in sub-Saharan Africa, mainly caused by floods.

In Ethiopia, Somalia, and Kenya, over 2 million people were displaced internally due to drought.

Cyclone Freddy, which struck Malawi, Mozambique, and Madagascar in early 2023, displaced over 500,000 people in Malawi alone.

Pakistan: Floods in 2022 resulted in nearly 1,700 deaths and over 8 million displacements.
Bangladesh record-breaking floods in 2022, causing over 1.5 million displacements.
Central Asia: Increasing desertification, glacial melt, and dam failures have led to displacements.
- Water management issues between countries like Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan have fueled tensions and clashes.

Brazil: Floods in 2022 displaced over 7lakh people.
Peru declared a state of emergency after cyclone Yaku (2023) caused widespread displacement.
Chile experienced extremely destructive wildfires in January 2023.
Cuba: Hurricane Ian in September 2022 caused 80,000 displacements.
Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico: Hurricane Fiona triggered 94,000 displacements.
Canada witnessed displacements due to extensive wildfires burning millions of acres by June 2023.
Pacific Ocean region: Disasters like tropical cyclones, volcanic eruptions, and droughts frequently cause displacements.
- In 2021, cyclones Ana & Bina hit the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and Fiji, leading to displacements.
- They are also vulnerable to slow-onset events like rising sea levels and coastal erosion.

In September 2022, more than 10 states in the East and Horn of Africa signed the Kampala Ministerial Declaration on Migration, Environment, and Climate Change.
Argentina introduced a new humanitarian visa pathway in May 2022 for individuals from the Caribbean, Central America, and Mexico displaced by natural events.
The United States government planned to provide financial assistance to five Native American tribes in Alaska and Washington for relocation from coastal areas and rivers.
Pacific Island governments are discussing a regional framework on climate mobility under the supervision of the Pacific Islands Forum.

IOM is the leading inter-governmental organisation in the field of migration and works closely with governmental, intergovernmental and non-governmental partners.
It was established in 1951 as the Intergovernmental Committee for European Migration (ICEM) to help resettle people displaced by World War II.
IOM is part of the United Nations system as a related organisation.
It currently has 172 member states and 8 states holding observer status. India is a member of IOM.
Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland.
Areas of work:
1. Migration and development
2. Facilitating migration
3. Regulating migration
4. Forced migration