In recent years, the world has seen a rise in the number of people displaced due to violence, conflict, environmental degradation, and economic hardship. These demographic shifts have re-focused interest and debate on the large-scale movement of refugees and migrants.
On 19 September 2016, world leaders gathered in New York at the United Nations Summit for Refugees and Migrants. In the resulting New York Declaration, states made a landmark commitment to protect the rights of refugees and migrants, and begin negotiating two global compacts: a global compact on refugees, and a global compact for safe, orderly and regular migration.
This series of commentary and information briefs aims to provide a periodic overview of developments around international migration and to contribute to ongoing discussions by highlighting some of the more “invisible” aspects of migration.
As environmental change is increasingly recognised as a powerful driver of migration, new policy frameworks must also acknowledge how it involuntarily “traps” households by curbing their ability to move when desired.
The proposed UN global compact on migration acknowledges the positive impact that migrants have on development, but there needs to be more acknowledgement that migration cannot be “extracted” from development and managed separately.
As UN Member States begin the process of developing a global compact on safe, orderly and regular migration, they must put special focus on protecting the rights, risks and motivations of migrant children.
