Expected start date:

2018•05•01

Expected end date:

2018•12•31

Institute:

UNU-GCM

Project Status:

Closed

Project Type:

Research

Project Manager :

Anna Franzil

Today, 54 per cent of the world’s population lives in urban areas, a proportion that is expected to increase to 66 per cent by 2050. Projections show that urbanization, combined with the overall growth of the world’s population, could add another 2.5 billion people to urban populations by 2050, with close to 90 percent of the increase concentrated in Asia and Africa. Cities, small and large, are at the forefront of receiving migrants. In the imaginaries of many on the move, cities are spaces of opportunity and hope, where many seek to build new lives. They are also spaces where migrants may wait in transit, often for long periods of time. While cities have long been resilient to change, the current period is seeing the emergence of a range of new humanitarian challenges, particularly in a context where state policies are falling short and there is an increasing fragmentation in interests, policies and priorities. This project will explore the nexus of urban expansion and migration, focusing specifically on how global international migrations is experienced at local levels, as well as by examining how good policies and practices at the local level can contribute towards the good governance of human mobility.