On 7th May 2024, United Nations(UN) agency, International Organization for Migration (IOM) released the report titled “World Migration Report 2024”. The report revealed that India received over USD 111 billion in remittances in 2022. Thus, India becomes the 1st country to surpass the USD 100 billion mark.
- International remittances surged by 650%, from USD 128 billion to USD 831 billion between 2000 and 2022.
Key Findings of the Report:
i.After India, Mexico is the 2nd highest recipient of remittance in the world and received USD 61.10 billion as remittance in 2022.
ii.China, which held 2nd position in terms of highest remittances globally for the longest time, was replaced by Mexico and eventually dropped to 3rd position, with USD 51 billion remittances in 2022 followed by The Philippines (USD 38.05 billion) and France(USD 30.4 billion).
iii.As per the report, only 3 Southern Asian countries i.e. India, Pakistan (6th position with USD 30 billion) and Bangladesh (8th position with USD 21.5 billion) are among the top 10 recipients of international remittances in the world.
iv.Migrants from countries such as India, Egypt, Bangladesh, Ethiopia and Kenya mostly work in sectors such as: construction, hospitality, security, domestic work and retail.
v.The report underscored various risks faced by migrants from sub-region including: financial exploitation, excessive financial debt due to migration costs, xenophobia and workplace abuses.
vi.Gulf countries remained the favorable destinations for migrant workers from around the world.
- Migrants in United Arab Emirates(U.A.E.), Kuwait and Qatar accounted for 88% , 73% and 77% of population, respectively.
International Mobile Students:
i.As per the report, United States of America(U.S.A.) is the largest source of destination country for international mobile students followed by United Kingdom (U.K.), Australia, Germany and Canada.
ii.The report data revealed that Asian countries are origins of the largest source of internationally mobile students.
- In 2021, China, with more one million students topped the list of origins of largest source of internationally mobile students followed by India(508,000).
iii.According to the report, there are more female than male international migrants in destination countries such as: U.S., Canada, France, among others.
iv.Countries with high percentage of male emigrants than female are: India, Bangladesh, Pakistan.
India-Specific:
i.As per the report, India is the largest source of migrants globally as nearly 18 million people, accounts to 1.3% of India’s population are international migrants.
ii.India remained one of the top countries in terms of receiving remittances in 2010 (USD 53.48 billion), 2015 (USD 68.91 billion), and 2020 (USD 83.15 billion).
iii.The report named India as the 13th most popular destination country in the world for immigrants. It has the presence of 4.48 million immigrants from different countries.
- The report highlighted four migration corridors that India has with others countries, among the top 10 international country-country migration corridors: India-UAE, India-U.S.A, India-Saudi Arabia and India-Bangladesh.
About International Organization for Migration(IOM):
Director General: Amy Pope
Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland
Established: 1951
Member states – 175 member states and 8 observers
