World Migration Report 2022

Since 2000, the International Organization for Migration (IOM), Geneva, has been releasing the World Migration Report every two years. This report, released on December 1, 2021, is the eleventh publication in the series. It presents critical data on the developments in human migration – its “scale, direction, demography and frequency” – especially in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. As of 2020, the global number of international migrants was estimated to be almost 281 million, of which nearly two-thirds were ‘labour migrants’ (defined as those who migrate from one State to another for the purpose of employment). The report states that the scale of international migration has increased since 2019, although at a reduced rate due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The report also notes a drastic increase in internal displacement due to natural disasters, conflict, and violence worldwide in the past two years. In addition to focusing on the ways in which the Covid-19 pandemic has altered migration and mobility around the world, this report engages with topics like peace and migration, disinformation, human trafficking along migration routes and the impact of climate change on migration. This 540-page report is divided into 12 chapters: Report overview: Technological, geopolitical and environmental transformations shaping our migration and mobility futures (Chapter 1); Migration and migrants: A global overview (Chapter 2); Migration and migrants: Regional dimensions and developments (Chapter 3); Migration research and analysis: Recent United Nations contributions (Chapter 4); The Great Disrupter: COVID-19’s impact on migration, mobility and migrants globally (Chapter 5); Peace and security as drivers of stability, development and safe migration (Chapter 6); International Migration as a stepladder of opportunity: What do the global data actually show (Chapter 7); Disinformation about migration: An age-old issue with new tech dimensions (Chapter 8); Migration and the slow onset impacts of climate change: Taking stock and taking action (Chapter 9); Human trafficking in migration pathways: Trends, challenges and new forms of cooperation (Chapter 10); Artificial Intelligence, migration and mobility: Implications for policy and practice (Chapter 11) and Reflections on migrants’ contributions in an era of increasing disruption and disinformation (Chapter 12).