Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration

With the agreement on Friday of the final text of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, the United Nations marked an important milestone. The governments of 192 of 193 UN Member States—all but the United States—have pledged to work together to both address the negative conditions that can drive migrants to leave their homes and to amplify the benefits of migration for individuals, communities and countries across the migration trajectory.

In a new commentary, Migration Policy Institute Senior Fellow Kathleen Newland examines what the agreement means for international cooperation on migration. Two years in the making, the compact balances recognition of the rights of individuals with those of states, and recognizes the importance of international partnerships even as state priorities, capabilities and resources are bound to differ.

KJ