Global Migration: International Migrants, Remittances and Displacement

The IOM World Migration Report 2024 estimates 281 million international migrants worldwide [1]. That is 3.6% of the world's population, so the vast majority of people do not migrate across borders [2]. IOM notes that the overall migrant share of world population has stayed fairly constant over time [3].

International remittances grew from an estimated USD 128 billion in 2000 to USD 831 billion in 2022, an increase of more than 650% [1] [3]. The growth continued despite predictions that remittances would fall sharply because of COVID-19 [1].

Of the 2022 total, USD 647 billion was sent to low- and middle-income countries [1]. That is about 78% of global remittances (FREEE.REPORT calculation). IOM says remittances to these countries now surpass foreign direct investment in them [1].

About 117 million people were living in displacement globally at the end of 2022, including refugees and internally displaced persons [3]. IOM describes this as the highest level in modern-day records [1].

The report compares current figures with its first edition in 2000. Refugees rose from 14 million to 35.4 million, and internally displaced persons from 21 million to 71.4 million [3]. Around 8,500 migrants were recorded dead or missing globally in 2023 [3].

Figures come from the IOM World Migration Report 2024, using the IOM news release, the Chapter 2 summary page and the full report PDF [1] [2] [3]. The dates of individual estimates differ from the publishing date; the remittance figures refer to 2022 and displacement to end-2022. The 2000 comparison values come from the report's comparison table with the 2000 edition [3].

The share of remittances going to low- and middle-income countries is a FREEE.REPORT calculation: USD 647 billion divided by USD 831 billion. Remittance values are in current USD.