International Migrants Day - December 18

➡️ INTERNATIONAL MIGRANTS DAY, December 18 - Protecting Migrant Rights & Ending the Stigma

Established in 2000, the UN General Assembly began celebrating International Migrants Day to honour the contributions of millions of migrants worldwide and to promote their protection and the respect for their rights.

On December 18, 1990, the UN adopted the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (CMW). The treaty sets out guidelines and protections to promote migrant workers' rights and reiterates that migrants are not only workers but also human beings.

Unfortunately, the treaty has been ratified by only 60 countries, making it one of the least supported UN treaties. None of the countries hosting the highest numbers of migrants, including the U.S., UK, Germany, France, the UAE, or Qatar, has signed.

Jump straight to our resources on ➡️ Migrants Day

Explore our comprehensive guides on -

• Comprehensive Guide to Refugees & Migrants

• Migrant Workers – Exploitation & Workers' Rights

• Undocumented Migrants

• Internally Displaced Persons

• Migration & International Development

• Remittances

• Integration of Foreign Citizens

• Refugees & Migrants in the UK, U.S., and France

• Migrant Caravans from Latin America

• Women & Child Migrants

• Migrant Workers in Qatar

• Committee of Experts on Intercultural Inclusion (ADI-INT)

As of 2024, the global number of international migrants was 304 million – double the number since 1990. Increasingly complex drivers of their relocation, including conflict, climate change, and economic crisis, mean a greater need to support migrant journeys, promote integration, ensure their rights are upheld, and also to understand and tackle the root causes.

"Migrants and refugees are not pawns on the chessboard of humanity. They are children, women, and men who leave or who are forced to leave their homes for various reasons, who share a legitimate desire for knowing and having, but above all for being, more." - Pope Francis.

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Key Drivers of Migration

While most people migrate by choice, others do so out of necessity. The primary driver for the vast majority of migrants is the betterment of their lives and that of their families.

ECONOMIC DRIVERS - Rising inequalities and the ever-increasing gap between the rich and the poor push people to seek better employment opportunities and higher wages. Inflation, economic crises, and a lack of decent and safe work have made it impossible to cover even basic needs in some areas.

SOCIAL DRIVERS - A common reason for migration is family reunification, where a family member has already made a better life for themselves elsewhere, and other family members wish to join them. Well-established migrant communities make the prospect of moving to another country more appealing. Better educational opportunities for young people, especially at the university level, are also attractive.

POLITICAL DRIVERS - This type of migration is usually forced as migrants' home countries become unlivable due to various reasons, including conflict, violence, persecution, a breakdown of law and democracy, repression, and the removal of political/civil rights.

ENVIRONMENTAL DRIVERS - We are already witnessing the serious consequences of our changing climate. Natural disasters are on the rise, and some countries are more vulnerable than others. Floods, droughts, desertification, hurricanes, earthquakes, and other disasters make areas unlivable, land unfarmable, and strip civilians of all essential infrastructure. People under these circumstances do not want to leave their homes and land but must seek opportunities elsewhere just to feed their families.

International Organisation for Migration (IOM)

Established in 1951, the IOM works to ensure the orderly and humane management of migration. It was founded after the Second World War to assist with the large numbers of war refugees and displaced persons. In 1992, the organisation joined the United Nations to expand its capacity to help growing numbers of migrants.

Their main work is to promote international cooperation on key migration issues and provide humanitarian assistance to migrants, refugees, and internally displaced persons who need it.

Their three primary objectives are:

• Saving lives and protecting people on the move.

• Finding solutions to the root causes of displacement.

• Supporting pathways for safe, regular and orderly migration.

In 2018, with the support of the IOM, the first-ever intergovernmental agreement on migration, the Global Compact for Migration, was adopted. It outlines 23 objectives regarding the management of migration, the protection of migrants' rights, and the promotion of greater cooperation between countries. It also works as a toolkit to help countries improve their migration policies. Former UN Secretary-General António Guterres established the UN Network on Migration shortly after to support its implementation.

The Growth of Anti-Immigration Sentiment

In recent years, an influx of migration has led to increasing hostility and negative stereotypes spread through misinformation, harmful political narratives, and dangerous social media campaigns.

Far-right political parties use immigration to push their agendas. They create fear by exaggerating issues, framing migrants as a threat to safety, our jobs, our homes, and our culture. Reform UK, a right-wing political party in Britain, have adopted this strategy to gain popularity and political support. The result was widespread anti-immigration protests, violent disorder, and rioting, which in 2024 and 2025 led to hundreds of arrests and injuries to police officers.

Statistics confirm that there is no relationship between migration and crime. Claims that migrants take jobs and commit crimes are baseless. In fact, migrants often fill undesirable jobs and boost the economy overall. When migration is managed safely and responsibly, it is a powerful force for good.

The vilification and criminalisation of migrants must end. Stigmas result in social exclusion, hinder their integration, create discrimination, increase the risk of depression and anxiety, and fuel violence and racial attacks against migrants.

The criminalisation of migrants leads to human rights violations, higher numbers of migrant deaths, harsh penalties, restrictions on humanitarian aid, the removal of legal representation, and increased separation of families. We must not turn humane and responsible migration control into a criminal justice issue.

Key Statistics on Migration

• Since 2014, more than 72,000 migrants have died or gone missing in their attempt to seek out a better life. The true number is likely much higher. More than 50% of these incidents were at sea.

• The deadliest migration route is the Central Mediterranean. In these waters, at least 24,000 people have lost their lives.

• In 2024, more than 8,000 migrants in transit lost their lives, making it the deadliest year on record.

• Record levels of conflict, economic instability, and the climate crisis are driving an unprecedented need for humanitarian aid.

• The first-ever International Migration Review Forum took place in 2022 to review the implementation of the Global Compact for Migration.

• A 2020 study in London estimated that every migrant worker boosts the economy by a net £46,000 in Gross Value Added (GVA) per annum.

• Migrants often send money back to their families and communities. These remittances in 2024 were worth a staggering $905 billion. This money helps reduce poverty, boosts the economies of developing nations, and increases financial inclusion for recipients.

• Migrant workers face significantly higher risks of labour exploitation. They are three times more vulnerable to forced labour. They are also much more likely to work under dangerous conditions, for excessive hours, be subjected to verbal and/or physical abuse, live in inadequate housing, and work for money far below the legal minimum wage.

• Recruitment fees for migrants can exceed up to 20 times their salary, trapping them in a cycle of debt.

• Sectors which are high risk for migrant worker exploitation include agriculture, the fishing industry, construction, manufacturing, domestic work, and the care sector.

• Hotspots for modern slavery and migrant abuse are Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, and Türkiye

• With the highest proportion of migrant workers in the world, the UAE is home to 8.7 million migrant workers. They make up a massive 88% of its population. These people are predominantly unskilled and low-paid.

• Labour migration in many Arab states is governed by the restrictive and abusive Kafala system. Sponsorship permits tying migrant workers to their employers, strips them of many of their rights, excludes them from society, and prevents them from reporting abuse and exploitation.

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Safe and well-managed migration holds extraordinary potential. They play crucial roles in labour markets, filling skills gaps, driving innovation and entrepreneurship, and reducing demographic imbalances in ageing societies. Migrants also boost economic growth, drive development, and provide an essential lifeline for their families back home.

Despite this, we are failing at our collective responsibility to protect these people during their most vulnerable time. Sustainable Development Goal 10.7 calls on countries to "facilitate orderly, safe, regular and responsible migration and mobility of people, including through the implementation of planned and well-managed migration policies". With less than 20% of all SDG targets on track, progress has been alarmingly slow.

We must support regular pathways for migration, promote opportunities for their success and integration, provide better protection of their rights, and recognise the benefits that they bring to the countries they leave and the ones that host them.

The issue of migration is a human rights issue. Let's use International Migrants Day to raise awareness, support those in need, work towards solving the root causes of migration, and spread the word that migrants are key to our bright, prosperous, and multicultural future.

"It is time to take a more comprehensive look at the various dimensions of the migration issue, which now involves hundreds of millions of people, and affects countries of origin, transit and destination. We need to understand better the causes of international flows of people and their complex interrelationship with development." - Kofi Annan

Author: Rachael Mellor, 08.12.25 licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

For further reading on International Migrants Day see below ⬇️