Credible Global Action or Non-binding Commitments? Analysis of the UN’s Global Compact for Migration

• On the occasion of the "International Migration Review Forum" from May 17-20, the Robert Bosch Stiftung publishes an analysis of the progress made so far by the "Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration."
• Migration expert Raphaela Schweiger: "International agreements such as the Global Compact for Migration can help actors respond quickly and concertedly in moments of crisis, as Europe did after Russia went to war against Ukraine." 
• The expert sees a need for improvement in the funding of the UN Migration Multi-Partner Trust Fund and in the protection of migrants. She considers the inclusion of cities in migration policy as a positive development.

Stuttgart, 12.05.2022 – From May 17-20, 2022, world leaders and non-state actors will meet at the "International Migration Review Forum" in New York to review the world's first agreement on safe, orderly, and regular migration, agreed upon in 2018. The Robert Bosch Stiftung’s migration expert Raphaela Schweiger analyzes what progress has been made since the adoption of the Global Compact for Migration and what the international community urgently needs to address in view of the 281 million migrants worldwide (as of 2021) in a paper titled "Assessing the success of the UN's Global Compact for Migration - credible global action or more non-binding commitments?". She also shows what the war in Ukraine could mean for the acceptance of the Global Compact for Migration on the international level. 

Backlog of funding commitments and internal displacement

One positive development is the set-up of processes and financing mechanisms, such as the UN Migration Multi-Partner Trust Fund, which has been set up with money from states and private actors, from which funds are made available for pilot programs and projects to promote the goals of the compact. The participation of mayors in global migration governance has seen a major increase in quality and quantity. Yet there are gaps. Funding for the UN Migration Multi-Partner Trust Fund must increase. Another core gap is the support and protection of internally displaced people: Despite the record number of 55 million people who had to flee within their home countries in 2020, they are currently not protected by either the UN Global Compact for Refugees or the UN Compact on Migration.

"International agreements such as the Global Compact for Migration make it possible for actors to respond quickly and concertedly in moments of crisis, as Europe did after Russia went to war against Ukraine", argues Raphaela Schweiger. For example, based on the "Temporary Protection Directive", the European Union was able to quickly provide protection and financial assistance to Ukrainians, faster than other groups of migrants and refugees arriving in the EU. This directive was adopted in 2001 but has never been applied. 

The war in Ukraine could lead to more acceptance of the compact

The war in Ukraine could also lead countries to reconsider their position on the UN Compact for Migration. Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic, which are now taking in large numbers of Ukrainians, had voted against the UN Compact for Migration in 2018. "Their stance might change after the current experience from the Ukraine crisis, especially if the UN Migration Fund will disburse funds to signatories of the compact in similar crises," Raphaela Schweiger said.

About the author: Raphaela Schweiger is the director of the Migration Program at the Robert Bosch Stiftung. Her research interests include the future of refugee and migrant protection, climate-induced migration, the relationship between technological change and migration, and issues of global migration governance. She has worked on migration and integration issues at the Robert Bosch Stiftung in various positions since 2015. She has developed a variety of projects and programs for practitioners and policymakers and has published on both community integration issues and international migration cooperation topics. She currently serves as Chair of the European Programme for Integration and Migration (EPIM).