Innovative tools for forward-looking migration policies

World leaders adopted the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) at the UN Intergovernmental Conference in Marrakesh this week.

The purpose of the GCM is to improve international cooperation on migration.

It tackles issues such as :

• migrant documentation;
• ethical recruitment;
• addressing vulnerabilities in migration;
• response to smuggling and trafficking;
• border management; migrant detention;
• diasporas and remittances;
• return and readmission.

The GCM will provide an important framework for cooperation among countries of origin, transit and destination over the next decades.

One major challenge for the GCM is the use of accurate information when developing migration policies to address the structural factors that shape migration.

To guarantee their success, policies will need to be based on a good understanding of what drives migration, making the most of the tools and approaches available to assimilate this knowledge into policy design.

Improving the collection and analysis of migration data is the first among 23 objectives of the GCM.

With that in mind, the JRC and the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) co-organised an official side-event preceding the Intergovernmental Conference to explore innovative uses of evidence for forward-looking migration policies.

The latest evidence on the drivers and root causes of migration was presented, as well some of the latest tools and approaches available for effective migration policy design:

• International Migration Drivers, developed by the European Commission's Knowledge Centre on Migration and Demography, which uses the best available data to quantify the relative importance of different factors that shape international migration;
• The Migration Toolkit of the EU Policy Lab, which helps policymakers and others to think collaboratively and systematically about the future challenges and opportunities of migration and integration;
• The Monitoring and Evaluation systems developed by ICMPD, which build on extensive experience in using field-based evidence to inform and improve policy.

JRC teams up with cities

The JRC also took part in the 5th Global Mayoral Forum in Marrakesh, a City-led dialogue on migration and development, supported by local, regional and international partners.

At a breakout session organised together with the City of Athens, the JRC demonstrated how it is contributing to the implementation of the GCM at EU city level –through data, tools, platforms and analyses.

JRC scientists presented the "Data for Integration" initiative, which offers new insights into the dynamics of the impact of migration and diversity in European cities.

The latest work of the Knowledge Centre for Territorial Policies was also presented.

For more information

Q&A: What is the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration?

Related Content

Q&A: What is the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration?