Migration & Refugees

“No to the pact of Marrakech!”

By Houda Hasswane
At the same time more than 160 countries adopted the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM), on the streets of Marrakech pro-migration groups and activists gathered in the city centre to chant: “No to the pact of Marrakech!”

A Migrant Turned Saviour of Others

By El Mahdi Hannane
Seven years ago, when Cameroon began experiencing inter-regional conflict, Armand Loughy, a 55-year old Cameroonian psychiatrist, strapped her youngest child on her back and with her five other children embarked on the dangerous Journey from Cameroon towards Rabat, Morocco’s capital. They fled the deteriorating security situation in Cameroon, looking for a better life.

Migration and the Economy—an Inseparable Pairing

By Alie Dior Ndour
On the streets of Casablanca there is only one thought on the mind of Ibrahima, a young Senegalese migrant.

Morocco’s Migrant Workers Struggle to Send Money Home

By Danielle Engolo
Morocco may be hosting the United Nation’s historic Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) conference. But when it comes to remittances—migrant employees, entrepreneurs and business owners all face the same challenge in Morocco: sending money legally to their home countries.

Migrant’s Compact Mischaracterized for Political Reasons

By Alice Thomas
The fact that a handful of countries have indicated their intention not to come to Marrakesh to endorse the compact signifies how the issue of migration has been politicized and become a political flashpoint.

Senegal Hosts Unique Community Events on Irregular Migration

By Mikaila Issa
It is four o'clock in the afternoon in Senegal’s capital, Dakar, when pupils, students and workers begin to fill the municipal town halls of Grand Yoff and Sociocultural Centre Grand Médine to attend a unique community event - a film screening and a debate.

US Blasts Migrant’s Compact – Even as 150+ Countries Embrace it

By Thalif Deen
As UN delegates met in Morocco to adopt a global compact to protect the rights and safety of refugees and migrants (GCM), the Trump administration launched a blistering attack condemning it as a violation of national sovereignty.

Communities Meet to Share and Discuss Experiences of Migration in Dakar

By IPS World Desk
Communities in Senegal's capital, Dakar, have been meeting across the city to watch a 45-minute documentary film made by returnee migrants, with support of the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

U.N. Remains Defiant Amid Last Minute U-turns on Global Compact for Migration

By Friday Phiri
Amidst negative sentiments and last-minute withdrawals from the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) by some member countries, the United Nations says the regrettable decisions are being fuelled by misinformation.

70 Years since the Universal Declaration on Human Rights – Hope Against Hope

By HRH Prince Al Hassan bin Talal of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
“Save the Children estimates that 84,701 children under five have died in Yemen from untreated cases of severe acute malnutrition between April 2015 and October 2018.” “The grim analysis of United Nations data comes as intense fighting has again erupted in Yemen's strategic port city of Hodeidah.”

A UN Conference Undermined by 11th Hour Withdrawals

By Thalif Deen
When the long-awaited UN conference focusing on the rights and safety of migrants and refugees takes off in Morocco, it will be a rare, if not an unprecedented meeting, for one reason: the withdrawal of at least seven member states almost at the 59th minute of the eleventh hour.

The ball is now in Myanmar’s court

By Porimol Palma
The November 15 attempt to repatriate Rohingyas to Myanmar has failed. And that was destined too, despite wholehearted efforts from Bangladesh. Although Myanmar officials were quick to blame their Bangladesh counterparts for the “failure”, the ground reality provided a different picture.

South Sudan Faces one of the World’s Worst Displacement Crises

By Daniel Sullivan
South Sudan is facing one of the worst displacement crises in the world today. More than half of the population is food insecure and, if not for international humanitarian aid, the country would almost certainly have already faced famine.

Migrants Send Record Amounts to Home Countries, but Overall Poverty Pertains

By Daan Bauwens
At the end of this year, migrants will have sent 466 billion dollars to family and friends in their countries of origin. Despite this record amount these remittances have little to no effect on the dire economic state of affairs in those home countries. Earlier this week in Brussels, a group of experts convened to think of ways to make the sent money work in a way that benefits more than just a few lucky families. 

Breaking Bread with Violence: Connecting the Dots Between Conflict & Hunger

By Hervé Verhoosel
Last week I met with Aamir, a 29-year-old Yemenite, living in Geneva since October 2018 and waiting for his application for asylum to be finalized.

Holding On: Their Most Cherished Possession

By International Organization for Migration
(Podcast) – Around the world, the number of people forced from their homes and neighbourhoods has more than doubled in the past twenty years. The current official estimate of displaced persons is more than 68 million.

IOM Facilitates Return of 418 Migrants Stranded in Yemen in First Evacuation Flight in More than Three Years

By International Organization for Migration
The UN Migration Agency (IOM) this week (26-29 November) began assisting 418 Ethiopian migrants stranded in Yemen to safely return under IOM’s Voluntary Humanitarian Return (VHR) operation. This is IOM’s first airlift since shortly after the conflict broke out in 2015 and the largest VHR operation carried out by IOM in Yemen to date.

Speculation over Rohingya repatriation not helpful: UNHCR

By AKM Moinuddin
Amid uncertainties over commencement of planned repatriation of verified Rohingyas any time soon, UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, says the key to any lasting solution lies in Myanmar.

Modern Hospital Replaces Bamboo Clinic in Bangladesh Refugee Camp

By International Organization for Migration
Health services for people affected by the Rohingya refugee crisis in Bangladesh received a boost this week, when IOM, the UN Migration Agency, launched two major new health facilities inside the world’s largest refugee settlement.

Culture, Migration and the Rise of Nationalism

By Jan Lundius and Rosemary Vargas-Lundius
The recent rise of nationalism in some western countries has been fuelled by an anti-immigration campaign based on the assumed negative influences migrants may have on the host country’s “culture”. Nationalists seem to conceive culture as a static concept. However, culture is not invariable, it develops and changes over time and as most things created by humans, it is also connected with power. Generally, when people define themselves as “cultured” they assert themselves as superior to others.

Global Migration Film Festival

By International Organization for Migration
The Global Migration Film Festival showcases films that capture the promise and challenges of migration
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