Search

Begin New Search Topic Migration Publication Year within 10 Years

71. Diverging Paths: The Impacts of COVID-19 on Migration in the Middle East and North Africa

Author:
Samuel Davidoff-Gore
Publication Date:
03-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
Abstract:
The shutdown of mobility at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic had drastic effects on movement throughout the Middle East and North Africa. Migrant workers comprise much of the workforce in Arab Gulf states, Jordan, and Lebanon, and many lost their jobs and returned to their countries of origin. Tourism and travel, which represent a sizeable share of GDP for many countries, largely halted. And border closures stranded irregular migrants along many major routes. Looking back, the global public-health crisis may have been less of a disruptor of existing trends, instead reinforcing and accelerating them. The Gulf has continued its shift away from petrowealth and toward more diversified economies that aim to depend less on migrant workers, and North Africa and Lebanon have become increasingly unstable. This report is part of a series of studies by MPI’s Task Force on Mobility and Borders during and after COVID-19 that explores opportunities to improve international coordination regarding border management during public-health crises. Other regional case studies in this series look at Asia and the Pacific, Europe, and South America. Thematic studies consider the role of digital health credentials in facilitating movement, the use of risk analysis to shape border policies, and the rise of remote work and “digital nomads.” A final capstone policy brief reflects on lessons for future public-health crises.
Topic:
Migration, Borders, Public Health, and COVID-19
Political Geography:
Middle East and North Africa

72. Mobility Shutdown: The Impacts of COVID-19 on Migration in Asia and the Pacific

Author:
Lawrence Huang
Publication Date:
03-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
Abstract:
Governments in Asia and the Pacific imposed some of the strictest and longest-lasting limits on human mobility during the COVID-19 pandemic, triggering a collapse in migration, stranding migrants abroad for months, and prompting mass returns that strained health and reintegration systems. But the region also kept COVID-19 cases and deaths relatively low for the first two years. To help inform policymakers’ preparations for future crises, there is a clear need to better understand the costs and benefits of this region’s approach to managing the COVID-19 public-health crisis through strict travel measures. This report is part of a series of studies by MPI’s Task Force on Mobility and Borders during and after COVID-19 that explores opportunities to improve international coordination regarding border management during public-health crises. Other regional case studies in this series look at Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, and South America. Thematic studies consider the role of digital health credentials in facilitating movement, the use of risk analysis to shape border policies, and the rise of remote work and “digital nomads.” A final capstone issue brief reflects on lessons for future public-health emergencies.
Topic:
Migration, Mobility, Public Health, and COVID-19
Political Geography:
Asia-Pacific

73. Lessons from COVID-19: Managing Borders in the Next Global Public-Health Crisis

Author:
Meghan Benton and Lawrence Huang
Publication Date:
03-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
Abstract:
In March 2020, the global mobility system shut down in previously unimaginable ways. As COVID-19 cases multiplied, governments closed borders and introduced sweeping travel restrictions, entry bans, and suspensions of asylum and refugee resettlement. These policies evolved over time, giving rise to a complex web of mobility restrictions, conditions, and exemptions for certain groups, with undeniable consequences for societies and economies around the world. Four years on, migration has returned to the pre-pandemic norm, but governments should not forget the costs of unplanned, long-lasting, and stringent travel restrictions. This is a key moment to examine the pandemic’s lingering impacts on mobility as well as to build a bench of evidence-based tools to manage mobility during future public-health crises. This brief highlights the importance of mobility measures that are clear, equitable, streamlined, and prepared to adapt to future challenges. This capstone brief concludes a series of studies by MPI’s Task Force on Mobility and Borders during and after COVID-19 that explores opportunities to improve international coordination regarding border management during public-health crises. Regional case studies in this series look at Asia and the Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, and South America. Its thematic studies consider the role of digital health credentials in facilitating movement, the use of risk analysis to shape border policies, and the rise of remote work and “digital nomads.”
Topic:
Migration, Borders, Crisis Management, Public Health, and COVID-19
Political Geography:
Global Focus

74. Managing International Protection Needs at Borders

Author:
Lucía Salgado, Susan Fratzke, Lawrence Huang, and Emma Dorst
Publication Date:
07-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
Abstract:
National borders are one of the primary apertures through which publics perceive and judge migration trends and policy. Dysfunction at borders has implications that go well beyond national security, affecting commerce and trade as well as human mobility of various kinds. For asylum seekers, who generally must reach another country’s territory in order to seek protection, borders can represent the difference between danger and safety. As publics in many countries become increasingly vocal in their dissatisfaction with the management of their nation’s borders, policymakers face the difficult task of designing border systems that prevent the outbreak (or perception) of chaos, even as major displacement crises and the complexities of mixed humanitarian, economic, and family reunification migration strain outmoded infrastructure. This report—part of the Beyond Territorial Asylum: Making Protection Work in a Bordered World initiative led by MPI and the Robert Bosch Stiftung—examines the key elements of an effective and protection-sensitive border system. It begins with an overview of what makes border management challenging at the best of times, and particularly so amid acute displacement crises. It then explores the core features of border processes capable of responding to mixed migration while protecting the right to seek asylum, and what conditions need to be in place for these procedures to be successful.
Topic:
Migration, Borders, Asylum, Protection, and Irregular Migration
Political Geography:
Global Focus

75. Public Opinion of Climate Migrants: Understanding What Factors Trigger Anxiety or Support

Author:
Natalia Banulescu-Bogdan and Lawrence Huang
Publication Date:
09-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
Abstract:
Climate change and extreme weather events are predicted to dramatically alter patterns of human mobility around the world. This poses an urgent policy question: How will receiving communities react to the arrival of people displaced by disasters and climate impacts? The degree of public support for newcomers can shape how policy responses are designed, implemented, and received by the public. But public opinion is not always easy to predict, nor is it static or fixed. A review of polling and experimental data from around the world suggests that climate migration may trigger anxiety if accompanied by a sense of disorder, unfairness, or loss of control, but also that communities can rally to support large displaced populations, given the right conditions. Efforts to increase support for climate migrants often draw on common narratives—of urgency, of climate migrants’ victimhood, or of their ability to make positive contributions to climate action—but these all come with their own risks and trade-offs. This issue brief looks at what is known about public opinion of climate migrants, and what lessons can be gleaned from broader efforts to mitigate public anxiety and build welcoming communities in the context of rapid societal change. It reflects on how common narratives can create environments more or less welcoming of climate migrants, and how they shape the space policymakers have to think creatively about how to manage climate migration.
Topic:
Migration, Public Opinion, and Climate Refugees
Political Geography:
Global Focus

76. The Role of Immigrant Workers in the Green Transition

Author:
Kate Hooper and Lawrence Huang
Publication Date:
09-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
Abstract:
Governments around the world have committed to decarbonizing their economies, but green transition goals will hinge on recruiting workers with the right skills to fill jobs in sectors such as clean energy. Apprenticeship and training programs, including for workers displaced from higher-polluting sectors, will be an important part of meeting this challenge. But it takes time to develop and scale up such programs, and the urgency of cutting global emissions has pushed policymakers and employers to also consider other strategies, including recruiting workers from abroad. This issue brief reviews the evidence on labor shortages in the green economy and on immigrant employment in green and brown (carbon-intensive) jobs. It then assesses the implications for immigration policymaking, including on admissions, immigrant integration, and international labor migration partnerships. Immigration, the authors argue, already plays and will continue to play a key role in the green transition, but there are risks to relying on immigration alone to address these labor shortages. Instead, immigration policy updates should be paired with other investments, including in worker reskilling, credential recognition, and global talent pool development.
Topic:
Migration, Carbon Emissions, Green Transition, and Green Economy
Political Geography:
Global Focus

77. Displacement and International Protection in a Warming World

Author:
Samuel Davidoff-Gore and Lawrence Huang
Publication Date:
09-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
Abstract:
Most climate-related displacement occurs within a country’s territory, but when people cross borders, it poses particular challenges. Policymakers in destination countries face the task of simultaneously managing borders and addressing arriving migrants’ emergency assistance and protection needs. Yet, the migration and refugee policy tools available are rarely, if ever, designed with climate displacement in mind. There is no consensus, for example, on what status climate-displaced people should receive, what rights and benefits they are entitled to, and how states should respond if climate change has rendered their homes uninhabitable. And unless policymakers proactively manage climate displacement, these movements can further weaken already fragile migration management and asylum systems. This issue brief explores what role the international protection system can and should play in responses to cross-border climate displacement and highlights steps policymakers could take to diversify the policy toolkit beyond the protection realm.
Topic:
Climate Change, Migration, Refugees, Displacement, Protection, and Climate Refugees
Political Geography:
Global Focus

78. Engaging Local Communities for More Effective Climate Mobility Programming

Author:
Lawrence Huang and Camille Le Coz
Publication Date:
10-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
Abstract:
Climate change does not affect all communities the same way. Floods in one location can cause massive, long-term displacement and even permanent relocation, while they might only trigger short-term evacuations elsewhere. This depends to a significant extent on how vulnerable communities are to begin with and the resources they have to cope and adapt. And because the impacts of climate change on human mobility are highly localized, the solutions need to be as well. In this context, localization means designing solutions to prevent displacement and support safe migration in ways that account for a specific community’s ability to recover, rebuild, and adapt, as well as its aspirations and priorities. Local stakeholders—including municipal authorities and local nongovernmental organizations—have a key role to play in this space, often alongside international and national actors, given their first-hand grasp of local needs and dynamics. This issue brief explores the importance of localization in climate migration solutions, as well as common barriers that have kept local actors from taking on greater roles. It also offers recommendations for turning localization from a rhetorical commitment into practical action.
Topic:
Climate Change, International Cooperation, Migration, Localization, and Climate Refugees
Political Geography:
Global Focus

79. Climate Change and Migration

Author:
Emmanuella Doussis and Maria Eleni Pantazi Psatha
Publication Date:
05-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP)
Abstract:
The nexus between climate change and migration is not newly emerged; yet it has recently started gaining territory in political agendas. It constitutes a complex phenomenon which involves various fields, making it harder to collect accurate and up-to-date data. Climate migration can take different forms-internal or cross-border, temporary or permanent- and is usually affected by a combination of factors. Therefore, this policy paper advocates for addressing climate migration in relation to existing agendas and frameworks, and not as a stand-alone issue. It also promotes the conceptualisation of climate migration by focusing on how we talk about people who migrate because of climate change and not what we call them. The last section provides a set of policy recommendations, advocating for tailor-made solutions based on regional and national needs and vulnerabilities. Overall, the policy paper underscores the importance of addressing the complexity of climate migration and calls for concerted policy efforts. · Climate change is one of the factors among others that lead to human mobility. · Climate migration is a multicausal and multi-form phenomenon. · Climate migration should not be perceived as a stand-alone issue for which an entirely novel legal and political framework should be adopted. Au contraire, it needs to be addressed in relation with other agendas and existing areas of cooperation. · The focus should be placed on how we talk about people moving for climatic reasons and not what we call them. · Attention should be paid to internal and inter-regional displacement. · One-size-fits-all policy responses are unrealistic; thus, tailor-made solutions should be promoted. · Mitigation policies can be developed through existing frameworks. · Reinforcement of National Adaptation Plans is of significant importance. · Migration can be seen as an adaptation strategy. · Promotion of humanitarian visas as well as bilateral free movement agreements are some policies that need to be reinforced.
Topic:
Climate Change, Migration, Mobility, Freedom of Movement, and Climate Refugees
Political Geography:
Global Focus

80. Looking for seasonal workers: Greece’s search for migrant labor

Author:
Angeliki Dimitriadi
Publication Date:
07-2024
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP)
Abstract:
The present report deals only with the recruitment/invitation of third-country nationals through bilateral agreements as a framework for addressing labor shortages. In other words, we focus only on the invitation of foreign workers, with an emphasis on skilled and low-skilled labor, rather than Blue Card holders. The report forms part of a larger project looking into legal labor migration. The first publication presented a snapshot of practices across select member states, while this paper zooms in on Greece to explore the practical issues that have arisen in the context of the attempt to recruit foreign workers. The emphasis on partnerships also reflects the Greek government’s current policy priority in addressing labor shortages, with more agreements expected in the next few months. Thus, it is a good time to pause and take in where things stand as regards implementation and future planning, and what issues require further attention. Through a discussion and analysis of current practices and issues, the report seeks to highlight two things: a pattern of responding to labor shortages by the Greek state, which tends to replicate previous practices without ‘daring’ to be more creative. the bureaucratic obstacles (which relate in particular to the process of inviting foreign workers works—metaklisi) that continue to hamper the implementation of these partnerships. Finally, the report incorporates a series of recommendations based also on consultation with different stakeholders[1] as well as with individuals who have been involved in the metaklisi process.
Topic:
Migration, Labor Issues, Partnerships, and Migrant Workers
Political Geography:
Europe and Greece