Stalker's Guide to International Migration

A world on the move

According to the United Nations, only around 191 million people lived outside the country of their birth in 2005 — around 3% of world population. Nevertheless the presence of international migrants can raise many contentious issues and generate controversy out of all proportion to their modest numbers.

Do immigrants steal the jobs of local workers?
Do immigrants sponge off welfare states?
Do emigrants drain skills from their home countries?

The Spanish coastguard intercepts a traditional fishing boat laden with migrants off the Canaries

Photo: UNHCR/A. Rodr

This site responds to these and other questions — attempting to clarify the most important concepts and shed light on some difficult issues. Note that where words are blue in the text, moving your mouse over these will produce further information in a box to the right. Most sections have four or more pages that can be accessed by clicking the 'next page' arrow, or by using the sub-menus that appear in the navigation bar on the left.