Recent updates

Hundreds of thousands of migrant workers are employed throughout garment and textile supply chains across Asia, Europe, North and South America and Africa.They are subject to much of the same abuses as local workers. However, these abuses are compounded by the specific context in which migrantworkers are employed.This report looks into the issues migrant workers are facing, existing strategies for organising and supporting migrant workers, and the most prevalent industry responses. It ends with

This report focuses on how protection issues are conceptualized and operationalized among international stakeholders in Bor, the state capital of Jonglei state in South Sudan, and analyses key challenges to the implementation and impact of protection initiatives on the ground. Since most of the literature on PoC tends to provide UN headquarters perspectives from various levels, the aim of the present study is to complement previous research by moving further down the protection chain and offerin

Israeli defence minister Ehud Barak should cancel military plans to forcibly displace around 2,300 Bedouin residents of the West Bank to an area beside the Jerusalem municipal garbage dump, Amnesty International said in a new briefing paper. In this document, the organization calls on the Israeli military to order an immediate halt to all demolitions in the 20 communities affected by the plan.

Nearly two years after the end of hostilities between the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the government, up to 5,000 displaced families are still thought to be living in camps and relocation sites in southern Mindanao, most of them in the province of Maguindanao. The majority of the estimated 750,000 people displaced between August 2008 and July 2009 have now returned or resettled elsewhere, but many remain in need of humanitarian assistance and support to help them rebuild their homes

This Humanitarian Policy outlines how the UK will help build resilience to crises and respond to humanitarian need resulting from conflict and natural disasters. It builds on the Government’s response to Lord Ashdown’s independent Humanitarian Emergency Response Review (HERR) but as well as covering rapid onset emergencies, also deals with the challenges of complex, chronic humanitarian situations. It also takes account of other UK strategies - Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict, Building

On 12 January 2010, an earthquake struck Haiti and killed over 200,000 people, injured more than 300,000 and displaced 2.3 million – nearly one quarter of the country’s population. At the height of the crisis, the UN system – 18 agencies, funds and programmes and the peacekeeping operation, MINUSTAH – led international efforts to help shelter, feed, provide clean drinking water, sanitation and medical assistance to more than 1.5 million displaced Haitians. Two years later, the UN continues to pr

A survey conducted in six displacement camps targeted by President Michel Martelly’s 100-day housing plan documents peoples’ lack of access to information and consultation on camp closures, one camp closure where armed law enforcement destroyed tents and belongings with sticks and machetes, and hand-outs of small cash payments without any other assistance – all of which directly contradict the durable solutions touted under the plan. The survey revealed a lack of community mobilization or involv

In 2010/2011 a study was undertaken in four Western provinces with organizations providing services addressing homelessness among Aboriginal peoples. The intent of the study was to identify the most effective policies, procedures, and practices for working with Aboriginal peoples who experience homelessness. The project identified existing success stories, and used the information gathered from organizations seen by their peers and their clients as providing effective services, to create a frame

In central Australia there has been an ongoing debate about urban drift – its existence and impact. Not much is known about the nature of the urban drift, whether in fact there is drift or circular mobility, or the role of major service centers such as Alice Springs. Many people may move to Alice Springs with accompanying family members for long-term medical treatment and then move back to their homes in remote communities. This research provides some insight into the issues related to mobility

This paper estimates the causal effect of permanently migrating as a child from a rural area to an urban area on human capital outcomes. The authors utilize a recent survey of urban-rural migrants in Indonesia and merge it with a nationally representative survey to create a dataset that contains migrants in urban areas and non-migrants in rural areas who were born in the same rural districts. It was found that childhood migration to urban areas increase education attainment by about 4.5 years by

The focus of this third issue of Migration Policy Practice is on Migration and Development. This special theme is informed by three articles by Kristof Tamas (on the EU Global Approach to Migration and Mobility), Irena Omelaniuk (on the GFMD’s achievements to date), and Ali Mansoor (on GFMD 2012’s work programme). This issue also includes a short introduction to, and a call for articles on, the possible development of benchmarks to measure the implications for migration of the Millennium Develop

After six months as an independent country, South Sudan still faces humanitarian challenges. The ICRC, working mainly in the volatile northern regions bordering Sudan, strives to ensure civilians are respected and the wounded are protected and receive treatment. It also provides aid for conflict-affected communities.

Population movements following disasters can cause important increases in morbidity and mortality. Without knowledge of the locations of affected people, relief assistance is compromised. No rapid and accurate method exists to track population movements after disasters. We used position data of subscriber identity module (SIM) cards from the largest mobile phone company in Haiti (Digicel) to estimate the magnitude and trends of population movements following the Haiti 2010 earthquake and cholera

In 2007, the Bali Action Plan introduced Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs) as a central concept for a new international climate regime (UNFCCC, 2008). Countries are currently trying to agree on how support for NAMAs can be realised and 47 countries have submitted proposed NAMAs (in more or less detail) to the UNFCCC in the first half of 2011 (UNFCCC, 2011a).To move forward on NAMAs, towards implementation and mobilising support, there is a need for clarity on how to develop a NAM

This report examines the characteristics of an effective labor standards enforcement system, with a particular emphasis on enforcement in industries and firms with heavy concentrations of low-wage immigrant workers. It argues that the administration, Congress, states, localities, and other stakeholders should make labor standards enforcement a pillar of their immigrant policy making agendas.

As part of a year-long study on urban refugee livelihoods, the Women’s Refugee Commission undertook a field assessment trip to Johannesburg in March/April 2011. The assessment focused on refugees‘ economic coping strategies, associated protection risks and potential market opportunities. This study focused on four urban communities: Somalis and Congolese in the inner city and Zimbabwean and South Africans in Alexander township.

Refugees’ vulnerability to poverty is influenced by the policy environment, access to services, control of assets, choices of economic strategies and the capacity to cope with risks. This report details findings and guidance from a qualitative, applied research initiative undertaken by the Women’s Refugee Commission that builds the knowledge base on urban refugees and identifies potential economic strategies and approaches to assist them in achieving self-reliance.

The practical guide has been developed for potential managers and implementers of livelihood programmes (programme staff, field staff, protection officers, senior managers, etc.) considering the use of microfinance as part of a broader livelihoods strategy. The policy framework is specifically addressed to UNHCR decision-makers. The guide is meant to provide practical information and tools to assess the appropriateness of microfinance in a conflict-affected community; and if relevant, to help de

The primary goal of providing assistance to refugees is to stabilize their lives, but a critical component of stability – livelihoods – is indirectly and inadvertently undermined by a service delivery system that requires refugees to spend an excessive amount of time and money getting to the offered assistance, particularly in urban settings. The principal aim of this paper is to quantify the time and money a typical refugee family must spend in order to access the services they need to survive

Police reform in the Palestinian Territories has faced many challenges. Rebuilding the police force in a post-conflict environment is not an easy task, and must take into account the community’s needs in order to build legitimacy. In 2006, the European Union Police Coordinating Office for Palestinian Police Support was established to support the short-term objectives of the Palestinian Civil Police and provide longer-term transformational change assistance. This issue paper discusses a number of