Human migration facts for kids

Annual net migration rate for 2015–2020. This map shows how many people moved into or out of countries between 2015 and 2020.

Human migration is when people move from one place to another, planning to live there for a while or permanently. This movement often covers long distances, like moving from one country to another. This is called external migration. But many people also move within their own country, which is known as internal migration.

Moving can bring many benefits. It can help individuals and families find better opportunities. It can also help people connect with others who have moved before, making future moves easier. Studies show that migration can be a direct way for people to escape poverty and improve their lives. People of all ages migrate, sometimes alone, sometimes with their family units, or even in large groups.

Sometimes, people are forced to leave their homes. This can happen because of a natural disaster or problems in their community. These people are called displaced persons. If they stay within their own country, they are internally-displaced persons. People who flee to a different country because of danger or unfair treatment can ask for protection. These are called asylum seekers. If their request is approved, they become refugees.

What is Human Migration?

People who move can be grouped into different types based on why and how they relocate. These groups are migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. Each group is defined by the reasons that make a person change where they live.

Different Kinds of Migrants

• Migrants are people who move to a new country for general reasons. These reasons might include finding better job opportunities or needing better healthcare. This is the most common term, as anyone who permanently changes their location is a migrant.
• Refugees are people forced to leave their country because of danger or unfair treatment. The UNHCR defines them this way. Reasons for refugees to move often include conflicts within their country or other forms of unfair control. Refugees usually have to leave quickly and might not have official documents.
• Asylum seekers are also people who leave their country because of difficult situations. However, they might not be facing immediate danger like war. Their reasons could include an unstable economy, political problems, or high levels of crime. Asylum seekers move mainly to improve their quality of life.

How Many People Migrate?

This map shows how the number of people born in other countries has grown in many Western nations. The colored areas show the total number of foreign-born people, and the slopes show how fast this number increased.

The number of migrants around the world from 1960 to 2015.

Many groups collect information about migration around the world. Organizations like the World Bank and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) publish reports with these numbers. The United Nations Statistics Division also keeps a large database.

Many people move between developing countries (called South–South migration). Others move between high-income countries (North–North migration). Since 2000, the number of migrants has grown in both developed and developing regions.

Substantial internal migration also happens within countries. This can be seasonal human migration for farming or tourism. It also includes people moving into cities (urbanisation) or out of cities (suburbanisation). However, most studies focus on people moving between different countries.

Almost half of all migrants are women. This is a big change from 50 years ago. Women migrate alone or with their families.

Where Do People Go and Come From?

As of 2019, the top ten countries where people moved to were:

In the same year, the top countries where people moved from were:

A typical grocery store on 8th Avenue in one of the Brooklyn Chinatowns in New York. Many Chinese immigrants have settled in New York City.

Many people from China have moved to New York City. It has the largest Chinese population outside of Asia.

As of 2013, the top 15 migration routes (where at least two million people moved) were:

Why Do People Migrate?

People migrate for many reasons. These reasons can be grouped into two main types: voluntary and forced migration. It can sometimes be hard to tell the difference, as many factors can influence a person's decision to move.

Voluntary Moves: Choosing a New Home

Voluntary migration happens when a person chooses to move. This choice is often based on a mix of economic, political, and social factors. These factors can be things that push people away from their home country or pull them towards a new country.

Forced Moves: When You Have No Choice

Forced migration happens when people have to leave their homes. This can be due to conflicts, natural disasters, or other serious problems. These situations leave people with no choice but to move to a new place. By the end of 2018, about 67.2 million people worldwide were forced migrants. This included 25.9 million refugees who left their countries and 41.3 million people displaced within their own countries. For example, in 2022, 6 million Ukrainian people fled their country due to conflict.

Push and Pull Factors

These are the reasons that either push people away from their home or pull them towards a new place. Push factors are the negative things about a person's home country that make them want to leave.

Pull factors are the positive things about a different country that encourage people to move there for a better life.

How Migration Affects the World

Human migration has largely positive effects on the world's economy. In 2015, migrants made up only 3.3% of the world population, but they contributed 9.4% of the total global economy.

Money Sent Home

Remittances are funds that migrant workers send back to their home countries. These payments are a very important part of the economy for some countries. Here are the top ten countries that received remittances in 2018:

Rank	Country	Remittance (in billions of US dollars)	Percent of GDP
1	India	80	2.80
2	China	67	0.50
3	Philippines	34	9.14
4	Mexico	34	1.54
5	France	25	0.96
6	Nigeria	22	5.84
7	Egypt	20	8.43
8	Pakistan	20	6.57
9	Bangladesh	18	5.73
10	Vietnam	14	6.35

Besides money, migrants also bring new ideas, foods, music, and traditions to their new homes. They also take part in community life and politics.

Moving Through Countries

Sometimes, people move through several countries before reaching their final destination. This is called transit migration. For example, people from Central America might travel through Mexico to reach the United States. These journeys can be very difficult and sometimes dangerous.

Managing Migration

Migration often involves many countries: the country people leave, the country they travel through, and the country they want to settle in. Even so, most decisions about migration are made by individual countries. Each country decides who can enter and stay within its borders.

How Countries Work Together

Countries also work together to manage migration. They create international agreements and treaties about human rights. For example, the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees helps protect refugees. There are also global plans, like the Global Compact for Migration. This plan helps countries work together for safe and orderly migration. It balances the rights of migrants with a country's right to control its borders. This plan was agreed upon by many countries in 2018.

A Look Back: Migration Through History

Throughout history, big changes like colonialism caused many people to move from their homes to new lands. This created connections between places that still exist today.

Old Ways of Moving People

In some historical periods, people were sadly made to move, sometimes against their will, to work in different places. This happened when powerful groups took control of new territories. Later, some groups moved to settle in new lands, often leading to local people being displaced or having to move from their traditional homes. After these historical periods, many people continued to move between their former homes and the new places they had settled.

Today, many countries have programs to welcome workers from other places, often to help their economies grow. Sometimes, people face challenges or unfair treatment when they move.

Ravenstein's Laws of Migration

In the 1880s, a geographer named Ernst Georg Ravenstein suggested some "laws" about human migration:

• Every time people move, some people also move back.
• Most migrants move only a short distance.
• People who move longer distances often go to big cities.
• People in cities tend to move less than people in rural areas.
• Young adults are more likely to move internationally than families.
• Most migrants are adults.
• Large towns grow because people move there, not just because more babies are born.

Basic Needs: Food, Safety, and Family

One idea is that people migrate because they are looking for basic needs like food, safety, and a place to raise families. Towns and cities grew as people worked together to find food and security. As technology improved and people cooperated more, it became easier for them to move and gather in towns and cities. So, migration happens because people are always searching for these important needs outside their usual homes.

See also

In Spanish: Migración humana para niños