The European Year for Development: Demography and Migration

Briefing 27-08-2015

If current trends continue, the world will have 9.7 billion inhabitants in 2050, but population growth will be unevenly distributed. The 1994 Cairo International Conference on Population and Development was a milestone that focused on the well-being of individuals, rather than numerical targets. There has been progress promoting human rights, education, gender equality, sexual and reproductive health, and reproductive rights, but rapid urbanisation and climate change represent new challenges. The international community has recognised the need to promote regular, safe and orderly international migration to harness the potential benefits of migration. Contrary to widespread views, emigration rates rise with economic development until countries reach an upper middle income status. The role migration plays in spurring development should be more widely recognised. Human mobility will be integrated in the post-2015 development agenda, and the Sustainable Development Goals will include migrationrelated targets. The EU is addressing the migration-development nexus in its Global Approach to Migration and Mobility, which is implemented through policy dialogues and cooperation projects in third countries. The European Parliament has insisted that the rights of migrants – particularly women – be part of the post-2015 agenda.