The UN Development Programme’s Human Development Report 2009 (HDR), entitled “Overcoming Barriers: Human Mobility and Development” was released simultaneously across the world yesterday. The report “makes a strong case for removing barriers to migration within and across borders, arguing that human movement had brought perceptible all-round benefits and held the potential to improve the lives of millions of poor and low-skilled people” (The Hindu).

According to the report, “Nearly one billion – or one out of seven – people are migrants. The 2009 Human Development Report demonstrates that migration can improve the lives of millions of people: the ones who move, those in destination communities and others that remain at home. The findings in this Report cast new light on some common misconceptions on migration, proposing a series of

migration policies that can allow migration – both within and between countries – to increase people’s freedom and improve the lives of millions around the world.”

The report comes at a time when experts and researchers from the international community are urging policymakers to reject misconstrued fears about environmental migration, instead adopt a more positive view towards people displaced by the effects of climate change by accommodating for future populations through increased development of destination hubs and also resilience programs at migrant origins. Here is a link to related news stories about the 2009 HDR from countries around the world, and the views on the findings. Below is a great introduction video which highlights the theme of the report with interviews of migrants from various countries.

Click here to access the report »

.
Source: UNDP on YouTube