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Migration

The United Nations estimates that more than 270 million people migrate between countries annually. This section considers the ways in which changes in health are a driver of migration—both within and between countries—as well as how migration and the ways in which migrants are treated affect human health.

Migration

258 M

Million people were international migrants in 2018

Million people were international migrants in 2018 Million people were international migrants in 2018

3.4%

Percent of global population made up of migrants

Percent of global population made up of migrants Percent of global population made up of migrants

70.8 M

Millions people today have been forcibly displaced

Millions of people today have been forcibly displaced Millions of people today have been forcibly displaced

15.9 M

Refugees today have lived in exile for 5+ years

Millions of refugees today have lived in exile for 5+ years Millions of refugees today have lived in exile for 5+ years

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Migration
Volunteers in protective suits disinfect a railway station in Changsha, Hunan province, China, February 4. The photo shows several people clad head-to-toe in protective suits fogging what is presumably a disinfectant in thick clouds. REUTERS/cnsphoto

Panicky Responses to the Coronavirus are Dangerous—Here’s Why
by Yanzhong Huang - February 4, 2020

Fear of the virus may spread faster than the virus itself, a potential threat to health, liberty, trade, and the economy

Migration
Migrants from Myanmar and Bangladesh in Thailand's southern Songkhla province on May 9, 2015. In 2001 Thailand launched a health insurance scheme for migrants and expanded it to dependents in 2005. Picture shows a triangle of men sitting cross-legged looking at the camera. REUTERS/Surapan Boonthanom.

The Geopolitics of Polio in Southeast Asia

by Swee Kheng Khor

The risk of re-emergence highlights the looming political choices Southeast Asia now needs to make to protect its people

Migration
Commuters walk on waterlogged railway tracks after getting off a stalled train during heavy monsoon rains in Mumbai, India, on July 2, 2019. Several women and at least one boy are walking in a group. One of them is talking on a cell phone. Several are sharing umbrellas. The water, even on the train tracks, which are presumably slightly elevated, is up to their ankles. REUTERS/Francis Mascarenhas

Don’t Call Them Climate Refugees

by Gulrez Shah Azhar

The majority of people displaced by climate change won’t cross international borders, will not be refugees or migrants

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Migration
The Grand Canal is seen after the Italian government imposed a virtual lockdown on the north of Italy including Venice to try to contain a coronavirus outbreak, in Venice, Italy on March 9, 2020. The image shows the iconic canal with almost no boats, just a single gondola. REUTERS/Manuel Silvestri

The Big European Shut Down

by Ilona Kickbusch, Susan Bergner

COVID-19 pandemic reflects the EU’s powerlessness to act coherently on health matters—but it also reveals a path forward

The image is a map of the world showing different countries colored different hues based on four levels of travel restrictions.
Migration

Travel Restrictions on China due to COVID-19

by Samantha Kiernan, Madeleine DeVita

A new global tracker mapping the impact of the new coronavirus on movement around the world

Volunteers in protective suits disinfect a railway station in Changsha, Hunan province, China, February 4. The photo shows several people clad head-to-toe in protective suits fogging what is presumably a disinfectant in thick clouds. REUTERS/cnsphoto
Migration

Panicky Responses to the Coronavirus are Dangerous—Here’s Why

by Yanzhong Huang

Fear of the virus may spread faster than the virus itself, a potential threat to health, liberty, trade, and the economy