Context

• The International Labour Organization (ILO) recently published the fourth edition of its Global Estimates on International Migrant (IM) Workers, to highlight the contributions and challenges faced by international migrants.

Key Findings of Report

• IMs made up 4.7% (167.7 million) of the global labor force.
• High-income Countries account for 68.4% (114 million people) IMs.
• Upper-middle-income countries account for 17.4% (29.2 million) of IMs.
• Rate of growth of International migrants dipped annually to less than 1% between 2019 and 2022.
• Migrant women faced higher unemployment rates (8.7%) compared to migrant men (6.2%).

Significance of International Migrants

• In 2024, India received an estimated $129.1 billion worth of remittances (14.3% of the world), the highest ever for a country in any year.

Key Initiatives for International Migrants

• International Organization for Migration (IOM)
• Estb: 1951
• Inter-governmental organization in the field of migration.
• Advocates for the rights of migrant workers

International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, 1990

• Signed: 18 December 1990
• Entry into force: 1 July 2003
• Treaty adopted by UNGA

Migration

• Migration is the movement of people away from their usual place of residence to a new place of residence, either across an international border or within a State.

Types of Migration

• Internal migration: Within a country
• External migration: International migration
• Forced migration: Due to factors like war, persecution, or natural disasters.
• Voluntary migration: Choosing to relocate
• Temporary migration: Migration for short duration
• Reverse migration: Returning to their country of origin or original place of residence

Reasons for Migration

• Economic Factors
• Push factors: Poverty, Unemployment and Exhaustion of natural resources etc.
• Pull factors: Opportunities for better employment, higher wages, better working conditions etc.
• Socio-cultural Factors: Marriage, Cultural factors, Caste-based discrimination, Religious discrimination etc.
• Environmental factors: Natural disasters, Climate change, Water scarcity, Deforestation and land degradation etc.

Status of migration based on 2011 Census

• Total Migrants: 45.6 crore in 2011 (38% of the population).
• 2001- 2011: Number of migrants increased by 45%.
• 21 crore rural-rural migrants
• Largest Sources of Inter-state migrants: Uttar Pradesh and Bihar
• Largest Receiver States: Maharashtra and Delhi
• 70% of intra-state migration was due to reasons of marriage and family.

Welfare Schemes for the Migrant Labourers in India

• PM Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi): Launched on June 1, 2020
• Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan-Dhan Yojana (PMSYM): Launched by the Ministry of Labour and Employment on 15th February 2019
• The legal framework for migrant labour welfare in India is provided by the Inter-State Migrant Workmen Act, 1979.
• One Nation-One Ration Card
• Plans for Remote Electronic Voting Machine (RVM)

International Labour Organization (ILO)

• Established: 1919 as part of the Treaty of Versailles that ended World War I
• Became the first specialized agency of the UN in 1946.
• Only tripartite U.N. agency that brings together governments, employers and workers.
• 187 Member states.
• HQ: Geneva, Switzerland.
• Major Reports: World Employment and Social Outlook (WESO), Global Wage Report etc.