Human rights
Dignity and justice for all.
Migration
For many families in poor countries, migration is an important way of earning a living. Between 50 and 80% of rural African households are said to have at least one migrant in their own or another country.
International migration has more than doubled in the past twenty years, with an estimated 200 million international migrants in 2005.
Managing migration can help both to reduce poverty and meet the demand for labour in developed countries. It can also have a positive social and political impact as successful migrants return home.
Money sent back by migrants plays an important part in sustaining the local economy. These ‘remittances’ through formal banking channels amounted to nearly US$167 billion in 2005 – much more than the combined aid rich countries gave in the same year. In Lesotho, for example, remittances account for 26% of the country’s total national income.
We help poor people make the most of migration by:
- helping countries plan the consequences.
- understanding the impact of immigration policies on development.
- supporting the efforts of migrant groups to help their home communities.
- helping people to invest at home by making money transfers easier.
Links
- Migration policy paper
(335kb) -
Remittances Customer Charter (38kb)
Research4development - Migration- Southern African Migration Project
- DFID Human Rights Research from IDS Knowledge Services
- An Overview of Trafficking in Women from IDS Knowledge Services
- Child migrants find their way home
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DFID Research Strategy 2008-2013 - Political and Social Science Research (610kb)
Moving abroad to find work has more than doubled in the last twenty years.
Migration is a courageous expression of an individual’s will to overcome adversity and live a better life.
Kofi Annan
