E.g., 04/16/2024
E.g., 04/16/2024
Development Impacts

Development Impacts

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Migration is recognized as an important vehicle for boosting development in both countries of immigrant origin and destination, and policymakers increasingly are seeking to use immigration policy to foster economic and social development at national levels and on the global stage, for example through the United Nations' 2013 High-Level Dialogue on International Migration and Development and the European Union's Global Approach to Migration and Mobility. The research here examines migration's varied development impacts and role of migrants as agents of innovation.

Recent Activity

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Policy Briefs
September 2018
Reimagining Skilled Migration Partnerships to Support Development
By  Kate Hooper
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Policy Briefs
July 2018
Mind the Gap: Bringing Migration into Development Partnerships and Vice Versa
By  Kate Hooper and Kathleen Newland
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Reports
November 2020
Immigration Data Matters
By  Jeanne Batalova, Andriy Shymonyak and Michelle Mittelstadt
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Policy Briefs
January 2018
Welcome to Work? Legal Migration Pathways for Low-Skilled Workers
By  Kathleen Newland and Andrea Riester
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Policy Briefs
January 2018
Moving Beyond “Root Causes”: The Complicated Relationship between Development and Migration
By  Susan Fratzke and Brian Salant
AfghanRefugees ZsuzsannaGal UNHCR
Articles
December 12, 2017
Increased Focus on Forced Return of Migrants and Asylum Seekers Puts Many in Peril
By Kathleen Newland and Brian Salant
Coverthumb GlobalCompactForMigration Brief1
Policy Briefs
November 2017
The Global Compact for Migration: How Does Development Fit In?
By  Kathleen Newland
Cambodian worker in Thailand
Articles
October 11, 2017
Criminalizing Irregular Migrant Labor: Thailand’s Crackdown in Context
By Maryann Bylander and Georgia Reid

Pages

Top Ten
December 1, 2011
Substantial Investments to Court Diaspora Entrepreneurs for Development Gains

With the goal of building and sustaining economic growth in mind, some countries have intensified their efforts to court investments from their nationals and co-ethnics abroad, recognizing that diaspora entrepreneurs are uniquely positioned to spot opportunities in their countries of origin and capitalize on them.

Feature
November 8, 2011
Mobilizing Diaspora Entrepreneurship for Development

Diaspora entrepreneurs have several advantages over other entrepreneurs or investors because they have social, political, and economic connections in two or more countries. Kathleen Newland and Hiroyuki Tanaka discuss the conditions and commitments on the part of countries of origin that can help attract and support diaspora entrepreneurs.

Feature
June 29, 2011
Potential into Practice: The Ethiopian Diaspora Volunteer Program

Development practitioners have long been aware of the change-making potential of diasporas, but only recently have begun to design programs that convert their latent talent and enthusiasm into results. This article by Tedla W. Giorgis and Aaron Terrazas examines the Ethiopian Diaspora Volunteer Program (EDVP) as a powerful example of how diasporas, donors, and developing countries work together to build from individual strengths and address common challenges facing the developing world.

Top Ten
December 2, 2010
Natural Disasters in Haiti and Pakistan Highlight Diaspora Response

Haiti and Pakistan were an unlikely pair until 2010, when horrific natural disasters made it impossible for the world to ignore their devastation.

Feature
April 22, 2010
Show Me the Money (and Opportunity): Why Skilled People Leave Home — and Why They Sometimes Return

Five factors, including wages and professional development, drive skilled people to migrate, and three reasons encourage them to return. Laura Chappell and Alex Glennie of ippr in London look at all of these factors and how motivations vary across different contexts and groups of migrants.

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Recent Activity

Policy Briefs
September 2018

Reimagining Skilled Migration Partnerships to Support Development

While partnerships to facilitate skilled migration have had mixed success in the past, the Global Compact for Migration is advancing a new approach that may change this. This policy brief compares this new partnership model with the traditional one, highlighting the questions policymakers will need to answer if they are to encourage mobility, sustain employer engagement, and see development benefits in countries of origin.

Policy Briefs
July 2018

Mind the Gap: Bringing Migration into Development Partnerships and Vice Versa

As policymakers look for ways to address the drivers of illegal immigration, many have called for migration aims to be incorporated into development work and development tools into migration partnerships. This policy brief analyzes the benefits and risks of heightened cooperation between actors in these fields, and identifies areas where joint initiatives may prove fruitful.

Reports
November 2020

Immigration Data Matters

This useful online guide links users directly to the most credible, high-quality data on immigrants and immigration in the United States and internationally. The easy-to-use guide includes more than 250 data resources compiled by governmental and nongovernmental sources, covering topics ranging from population stock and flow numbers to statistics on enforcement, public opinion, religious affiliation, and much more.

Policy Briefs
January 2018

Welcome to Work? Legal Migration Pathways for Low-Skilled Workers

Although in many countries immigrants fill labor gaps in fields such as agriculture and construction, few legal migration pathways exist for low-skilled workers. As states meet to negotiate a Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration, this policy brief takes stock of the channels available for such workers to move legally and take up work abroad, highlighting promising practices and policy gaps.

Policy Briefs
January 2018

Moving Beyond “Root Causes”: The Complicated Relationship between Development and Migration

Development assistance may be a blunt tool for reshaping migration patterns—and indeed one that could increase flows over the short term. Shifting the focus away from increasing individuals’ skills and assets toward investments in the broader economic or governance structures that are a prerequisite for growth and stability may offer more alternatives to emigration in the long run.

Articles
December 12, 2017

Increased Focus on Forced Return of Migrants and Asylum Seekers Puts Many in Peril

Governments on the receiving end of migrants and refugees reinforced their commitment to returns in 2017, sending or coercing migrants to move back to impoverished or violent homelands. The Dominican Republic pushed out some 70,000 Haitians and native born of Haitian descent, while more than 500,000 Afghans left Iran and Pakistan. Though many of these migrants chose to return, in practice the line between forced and voluntary returns is blurry.

Policy Briefs
November 2017

The Global Compact for Migration: How Does Development Fit In?

Migration and development are intimately linked, but they have not always shared the international policy stage. As UN Member States kick off negotiations for the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration—and with adoption planned for 2018—this brief examines the evolving relationship between these policy areas and considers what a global compact has to offer, if well designed.

Articles
October 11, 2017

Criminalizing Irregular Migrant Labor: Thailand’s Crackdown in Context

Thailand has become a key destination for migrant workers, primarily from Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos. Many lack authorization, however, and as their numbers have grown, so has the government's intent in regulating their movement—sometimes provoking unintended results. This article explores recent patterns in labor migration to Thailand and examines the likely impacts of a 2017 decree criminalizing illegal employment.

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