The Human Face of Migration is a phenomenon involving people moving from one place to another for settling temporarily or permanently. There is a search for better living. Labour migration is a big factor. Some are forced to move due to forced displacement. Many end up as refugees due to religious, political or ethnic persecution or due to poverty and unemployment. Nations retain the power of deciding on the entry of non-nationals.
In 2020 there were approximately 281 million migrants globally. They represent 3.6 per cent of the global population.
More than 40 per cent of all international migrants in 2020 were born in Asia. The movement is from developing countries to larger economies like the USA, Arab countries, France, and Russian Federation.
India has a total number of 45.36 crore internal migrants, which is 37% of the country’s population as per 2011 census. This includes inter-state migrants and migrants within each state.
The theme for 2021 is “Harnessing the potential of human mobility”