Number of int'l migrants reaches 272M: UN

CAIRO – 18 September 2019: The number of international migrants globally reached an estimated 272 million in 2019, an increase of 51 million since 2010.

Currently, international migrants comprise 3.5 percent of the global population, compared to 2.8 percent in 2000, according to new estimates released by the United Nations on Sept. 18.

The International Migrant Stock 2019, a data set released by the Population Division of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), provides the latest estimates of the number of international migrants by age, sex and origin for all countries and areas of the world.

The estimates are based on official national statistics on the foreign-born or the foreign population obtained from population censuses, population registers or nationally representative surveys.

Liu Zhenmin, UN under-secretary-general for DESA, said, “These data are critical for understanding the important role of migrants and migration in the development of both countries of origin and destination. Facilitating orderly, safe, regular and responsible migration and mobility of people will contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals."

In 2019, regionally, Europe hosts the largest number of international migrants (82 million), followed by Northern America (59 million) and Northern Africa and Western Asia (49 million).