Finding Balance – Harnessing the Benefits and Addressing Key Challenges of Regular Migration Pathways

IOM Director General Amy Pope’s Keynote Address at the Second Session of the International Dialogue on Migration 2024

Geneva  – Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, it is a real pleasure to be here today among such valued partners, colleagues and friends.

Before I begin, I’d just like to flag that today also marks the beginning of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based violence – a topic that is of great importance to IOM and to me personally, not just for 16 days, of course, but every day. It’s a time when we shine a spotlight on our concerted efforts to combat GBV, and to put survivors at the heart of our work.

Now to the issue before us today. While those of us in this room may have different perspectives and different approaches, I believe that we all want to see migration better managed globally. And we all know that we need to work together to achieve this goal.

We also know that globally, migration – and migrants – are a critical driver of economic resilience, growth and prosperity. This is a hard fact that underpins much of our work at IOM.

Our shared goal must be to harness these enormous benefits while addressing the challenges of irregular migration. In other words, to fix the broken global migration system with solutions that make sense for the modern world. To ensure that migration is safe, orderly and humane – but also smart and strategic.

Since our last International Dialogue on Migration meeting in New York, in May, we have had plenty of reminders of why and how the current system isn’t working – and why we need a new model.

The drivers of displacement are increasing and becoming more complex. As we heard loud and clear at COP29 earlier this month, the numbers of people displaced globally by climate change now exceed those displaced by conflict. And the projected numbers – in the absence of concerted, urgent action – are unimaginable.

Last year, more than 8,500 people died on migration routes around the world, the deadliest year on record. This year is set to break new records. Migrant deaths in the English Channel, for example, reached unprecedented numbers by September 2024 already.

The reason is clear – many potential migrants find it impossible to access legal channels – regular pathways – leaving them no choice but to resort to irregular migration and asylum processes.

And even though legal migration to the world’s wealthiest countries surged to a record high in 2023, bringing clear economic gains, election campaigns in many countries have focused on concerns over asylum seekers arriving irregularly – though they represent a fraction of total arrivals.

Ironically, negative migration rhetoric is playing out against a backdrop where migration is essential for many states. Many wealthy countries have critical labor market gaps – for example in the health care sector – and are experiencing demographic shifts towards an ageing, shrinking population.

In fact, thirty of the largest economies in the world have labor shortages, and those unfilled jobs cost those economies an estimated USD 1.3 trillion in lost GDP just last year.

So, what are the solutions? The short answer is that we need to recalibrate migration and asylum systems holistically, considering displacement pressures, humanitarian concerns, and labor market needs. To effectively manage irregular migration and curb abuse of the current system, governments need to commit to a comprehensive and strategic approach, combining development, support to hosting countries, and available pathways for vulnerable people to migrate legally.

We also need to strengthen international cooperation and partnerships – not just between and with states, but with the private sector, youth, diaspora members and many more – leading to the creation of innovative solutions, at scale, that will have sustained impact and contribute to meaningful change.

Facilitating pathways for regular migration is a key objective of IOM’s Strategic Plan – alongside saving lives and driving solutions to displacement. Its overriding aim is not only to ensure that migration is well managed, but that its full potential is harnessed. That it drives growth and prosperity for everyone, while protecting the most vulnerable.

In today’s polarized political discourse around migration, this objective is also particularly sensitive for some Member States – but it is often misunderstood.

Regular pathways have many components and encompass many activities that, in different ways, aim to address irregular migration and improve the system.

IOM regularly supports States, regional bodies and economic communities in the development, revision and rights-based implementation of laws and policies aimed at stronger migration governance. Last year alone, we provided this kind of support in over 80 countries.

This includes improving border management systems, such as immigration procedures. It also includes working to counter trafficking in persons, smuggling of migrants and related transnational crimes. And it may entail the safe, dignified and voluntary return of people to their countries of origin, where appropriate – as well as supporting their sustainable reintegration.

But we need to zoom out and look at the bigger picture. A workable model of migration – based on a comprehensive approach, where regular pathways are a key component – has at least four prerequisites.

First, we need to explicitly recognize the link between development and migration. We know that poor development outcomes often fuel irregular migration. But we also know that migration fuels development.

For those fleeing persecution or war, political solutions are essential. For the millions fleeing poverty, climate change or weak governance, other solutions are needed.

Investments in education, infrastructure, financial inclusion, agriculture, and skills training in home countries are critical to bring stability. Migrants’ remittances already significantly boost developing economies, so leveraging migration as a tool for development is critical in the face of dwindling official development assistance.

Second, we need recalibrated migration policies to better meet growing labor demands – resilient economies will depend on this. Irregular migrants are finding jobs in the informal markets of their destination countries, signaling an imbalance between regular migration pathways and economic need – particularly in sectors like agriculture, construction, hospitality and healthcare services. We need to create pragmatic, labor-responsive migration policies to address these shortages.

Third, we need to combine development, labor shortage analysis, and migration. By directing development funds towards skills training for would-be migrants, particularly those who are vulnerable, we can benefit everyone – the migrants, the host countries, and their countries of origin.

This requires analyzing labor market gaps and prioritizing skills training in origin communities – like in Bangladesh, for example, where technical schools offer would-be migrants training in skills such as car repair and childcare.

Or in Germany, where an initiative to train and recruit nurses internationally has potential benefits both locally and in recipient countries.

It’s also important to ensure that trained workers can access job opportunities through ethical, regular channels. One promising example – that could be replicated and scaled up – is the labor mobility agreement reached last year between Australia and Tuvalu, aimed at addressing the threat of rising sea levels in Tuvalu while addressing labor demands in Australia.

It’s equally important that the acquired knowledge and skills of migrants are strategically invested back into their home communities, through apprenticeships and circular migration programs, for example. Diaspora communities can play a key role here, enhancing local skills training and services.

The fourth and final prerequisite of a revamped migration system is the need to invest in migrant protections and support their integration into host communities. This includes raising awareness in home countries, empowering civil society organizations and unions to monitor conditions in host countries and ensuring regular oversight and enforcement of labor laws. Local officials, community leaders, and the private sector must be engaged to provide sufficient services and support for migrants.

There is also opportunity for migration to contribute in very meaningful and tangible ways to the just transition and green economies. We know, for example, that the growth in demand for green skills in many countries around the world is already higher than availability within their own labor market – a gap that international migration can certainly help to fill.

In conclusion, to truly realize the promise of migration, we need a complete rethink of the current system. Instead of spending billions on border enforcement, we should invest in a targeted approach that links migration trends and labor market needs with development investments in vulnerable communities.

Safe and regular pathways, as part of a comprehensive approach, are key to making this work. Our three panel discussions here today will explore how regular pathways can:

1. Bolster sustainable development,
2. Catalyze the green transition, and
3. How we can combat disinformation to enable the realization of regular pathways solutions.

The focus will be very much on practical solutions – on how to build a system that empowers people to connect with opportunities and enables them to reinvest their resources into their communities of origin. The ultimate aim is to ensure that migration benefits everyone, everywhere.

Thank you.