The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has launched the 2025 International Dialogue on Migration (IDM) in Geneva, a global forum that unites governments, community leaders, and experts to focus on making migration safer, fairer, and more humane. The Dialogue emphasizes practical solutions for migrants, including recognizing skills, granting legal identity, improving access to visas, securing fair employment, and providing community support, with particular attention to groups often marginalized, such as women and young people.
IOM Director General Amy Pope highlighted that migration is often mischaracterized as a crisis, whereas it represents resilience and opportunity. Safe and dignified movement benefits not only migrants but also the communities they join and leave behind. Migration enables families and societies to adapt to changing realities, with over 300 million people living outside their home countries and more than 83 million displaced internally by conflict or disaster as of mid-2024.
Migrants contribute significantly to their home and host countries. In 2024, remittances from workers abroad totaled USD 685 billion globally, supporting schools, farms, and businesses. In Africa, USD 100 billion in remittances accounted for nearly six per cent of the economy, surpassing the combined value of aid and investment. Beyond financial contributions, migrants fill essential roles in healthcare, agriculture, construction, and care services, strengthening economies, fostering innovation, and building resilient communities.
Despite these contributions, access to safe and regular migration routes is increasingly limited due to restrictive policies and scarce opportunities, forcing many to undertake dangerous journeys. The IDM aims to address these challenges by fostering international cooperation and sharing solutions that provide migrants with real choices.
The 2025 Dialogue features four regional sessions covering Asia and the Pacific, the Americas, Africa, and Europe and Central Asia. These sessions focus on exchanging lessons and identifying practical steps aligned with local priorities, feeding into a global meeting later in the year. At its core, the IDM centers on people, striving to ensure that migration occurs safely, with dignity, and with hope for a better future.
