As many as 17 million Indians live abroad; tops in International Migration Report: UN
New York, December 19: Indians are very keen on earning more and therefore they travel abroad and live a lavish life. Therefore, as many as 17 million Indians live across the globe with about 5 million Indians residing in the Gulf region alone.
According to the 2017 International Migration Report, across the world, there are an estimated 258 million people who live in a country other than their country of birth, an increase of 49% since 2000. As much as 64% of them live in high-income countries.
India has topped the list of people living abroad at 17 million with about 5 million Indians residing in the Gulf region alone including the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia while 2 million Indians in the United States of America. While Mexico, Russia, China, Bangladesh, Syria, Pakistan and Ukraine also have large migrant populations living abroad, ranging from 6 to 11 million each.
In the year 2017, 17 million peoples went abroad for various reasons, followed by Mexico at 13 million. However, other countries of origin with large migrant populations include Russia at 11 million, China at 10 million, Bangladesh at 7 million, Syria at 7 million and Pakistan and Ukraine at 6 million each.
Interestingly, the International Migration Report includes 26 million refugees or asylum seekers, most of whom, however, were hosted by low-and-middle-income countries. The reports also said migrants were also older when they made the shift i.e from 38 years in 2000 to 39.2 years in 2017. Surprisingly, Women migrants outnumbered men in all regions, except Africa and Asia.
The report also showed that international migration makes an important contribution to population growth in many parts of the world and even reverses population decline in some countries or areas. Between 2000 and 2015, migration contributed 42% of the population growth in Northern America and 31% in Oceania.
In Europe, the size of the total population would have declined during the period 2000-2015 in the absence of migration. International migration is a critical concern for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the report said.
UN department of economic and social affairs under-secretary-general Liu Zhenmin said, “Reliable data and evidence are critical to combat misperceptions about migration and to inform migration policies.” “These new estimates of numbers of international migrants around the world will provide an important baseline for the Member States as they begin their negotiations on the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration,” Liu noted.
