Fears that immigrants sap jobs flawed, economic benefits high: IOM

Manila Bulletin
June 23, 2005

Fears that immigrants sap jobs flawed, economic benefits high: IOM

GENEVA, June 22 (AFP) — Concerns in Western countries that immigrant numbers are spiralling out of control, causing job losses and hikes in welfare spending, are not only flawed but contrary to the evidence, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Wednesday.

The world’s estimated 185-192 million migrants — up from 175 million in 2000 — boost the economies of their new countries and the homelands they leave behind, although the impact of the brain drain on poor nations remains a concern, the IOM said in a new study.

"We are living in an increasingly globalized world which can no longer depend on domestic labor markets alone. This is a reality that has to be managed," said Brunson McKinley, the IOM’s director general.

"If managed properly, migration can bring more benefits than costs," McKinley told reporters at the launch of the 2005 World Migration Report.

Focusing on Western Europe, where many studies have highlighted a need to fill gaps caused by low birth rates, the IOM said direct competition between migrants and local workers is rare.

Migrants are concentrated at the higher and lower ends of the employment market, often in jobs the locals are either unable or unwilling to do, said the IOM.

They can also generate billions of dollars for government coffers, with their taxes outweighing welfare payments.

However, many governments, particularly in Europe, are still failing to get to grips with the need for proper immigration policies, said the IOM.

"Migration is not like goods and capital crossing borders," said Irena Omelaniuk, the report’s editor.

"It has some irrational, personal and subjective elements to it, which make it more difficult for governments to understand and to manage."

The United States remains the world’s top destination, home to about 35 million migrants, said the IOM.

It is followed by Russia, with 13.3 million, largely people who left other republics of the former Soviet Union after 1991.

Germany (7.3 million), Ukraine (6.9 million), France (6.3 million), and economically booming India (6.3 million) are next.

The top migrant sending countries are China, with a diaspora of 35 million, India (20 million) and the Philippines (seven million).

Migrants are a key source of income for many poorer countries, the report said.

They officially sent home 100 billion dollars in 2004. Another 100 billion dollars is thought to flow home through informal channels, the IOM said.