Dire-Dawa University

School of Graduate Studies

Department of Geography and Environmental Studies

Program: Post Graduate (Academic Calendar: 2021)

December 24, 2021

Student: Saed Hassan Mohamed

Program: Urban and Regional Development Planning
Student ID: none
Email:
Tell:

Course Instructors:
 Matiwso Belayhun (Assi. Prof):
matibelayhun@gmail.com.
 Saed Hassan 1

Saed Hassan
Instructor: Matiwos Belayhun
“Migration and its impact on cities), article critique.
December 24, 2021

Article reviewed

World economic forum “migration and its impact on cities”

www.weforum.org, October 2027

Introduction
As migration has constantly shown an upward trend around the world, The report
“Migration and Its Impact on Cities” by the World Economic Forum with the collaboration of
PwC, seeks to address how recently overwhelming migrations around the world impact cities and
their origin residents both positively and negatively according to economic, political, and social
impact. As globally debates predominantly focus on migrations as a nation, this report attempts
to highlight the state of migration as a whole and particularly at a city-level through stating the
definition of migration, types of migration such as internal or international migration, movement
of patterns, or by decision-making approach, the causes of migration across the globe, the current
migration flows and the top migration routes of the world, the position of city leaders on
migration by studying 68 cities which extremely affected by the state of migration and narrating
their stories of migration whereby 22 among these cities had initiated unconventional approaches
to address their issues.
In addition, the forum tried to analyze the challenges and opportunities with the solutions
to avert the negative impact of migration on cities in terms of infrastructure, sociopolitical and
economic aspects. Furthermore, reporters discussed how the cities which might be affected by
current or any future trend of migrations be prepared to adapt and manage migration more
effectively.
 Saed Hassan 1

Finally, the World Economic Forum and their contributors to this report suggested a
roadmap for the long-term integration of migrants to use city leaders as a guideline to handle
migration issues not only today and but in the future as well.
Overall, migration is a worldwide issue and this report might be useful for the city
leaders, civil society, and governmental agencies particularly those are about migration issues.
Also, this report might overturn the widespread stigmatization of migration and may reduce the
xenophobia of certain societies towards migrants as it exposes the positive side of migrants
through contributing and enriching the economy of their destination cities. Likewise,
complexities and diversity in race, religion, ethnicity, and culture are healthy for the city.

Executive Summary
The report entitled “Migration and Its Impact on Cities” by the World Economic Forum
with the collaboration of PwC seeks to address how rapidly increasing migrations around the
world impact cities. The report is structured into five main chapters. The first chapter in general
focuses on the classification of migration by political boundaries (internal or international),
movement of people (step, circular, or chain), and decision-making approach, based on
sociopolitical or developmental factors (voluntary or involuntary), the causes, the ongoing
migration follows and top migration routes of the world, and concludes an assessment of
economic, social and political of migration both positive and negative.

As stated in the first chapter of this report, the world has 244 million international
migrants in 2015 and 766 million internal migrants in 2016 according to the latest official reports
by UN DESA, Roughly 1 billion migrants across the globe. Total international migrants recorded
in 2015, 58% reside in developed nations, with 85 million coming from developing nations. Of
the 177 million migrants of working age, 59% stay in developed nations. In addition, 75% of
international migrants are between the ages of 20 to 64. According to the report, possible
migrants desire to move to the United States the most. Nearly 147 million adults, or 21% of the
adult population worldwide, chose the United States as their desired future residence. Germany,
Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Australia, and Saudi Arabia are each attractive to at least
25 million adults and have been choice destinations for the past decade. Only 20 countries attract
65% of all possible migrants across the world.
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The United States has the most immigrants and has 19% of the world’s total migrants.
Germany and Russia follow with a combined share of 9.7%. Also, Over 60% of global migration
probably consists of people moving to neighboring countries or countries on the same continent.
Nine of the top 10 corridors globally including Mexico to the United States, connect neighboring
countries. Similarly, Up to 87% of the 160 million migrants dwelling in developed destinations
are attracted to five regions – North America, Western Europe, Oceania, Gulf Cooperation
Council (GCC) nations, and East and South-East Asia. Only one nation from the top 10 corridors
has a destination country in North America. Seven of the corridors have a destination country in
the Middle East, one has a country in South-East Asia and another a country in North Africa.
Further, destinations with the highest number of international migrants are oil-producing nations
of West Asia and conflict-affected regions of the Middle East. In 2015, Asia-to-Asia was
recorded to be the largest regional migration route, with 59 million migrants originating in
another Asian country, followed by 40 million migrants in the Europe-to-Europe corridor and 25
million migrants in Latin America and the Caribbean-to-North America corridor.

Regarding internal migration which has a much large scale as compared to international
migration but is given much less attention, it has affected the lives of 766 million migrants
worldwide. In the United States, as a report of 2013, about 27% of the whole population was
born in one US state but was migrated to another. Nearly, 83% of Latin America’s population
lives in cities. In India, interstate migration doubled between 2001 and 2011 compared to the
precedent decade, growing 4.5% annually. In Russia, 88% of migrants resettle within the
Russian Federation. According to the 2010 census, there are more than 220 million internal
migrant workers in China, which exceeds about 90% of the world’s international migrants. In
Europe, as of January 2016, 19.3 million people were dwelling in a different EU Member State
from the one where they were born. In Cyprus, Hungary, Ireland, Luxembourg, and Slovakia.

Once migrants arrived in their destination country, they stay in cities in large numbers,
where they significantly drive growth in the urban population as well as the economy. As a
social and economic impact, they are a source of ideas and innovation who can contribute to the
business, governments, and the entire socio-economic aspect of the designed city. In 2015,
migrants contributed $6.4 trillion-6.9 trillion (9.4%) of the world’s gross domestic product. in
conversely, migrants can also pose a risk to social cohesion, cultures, and traditions, and to a
 Saed Hassan 1

certain extent to the safety and security of residents as many African cities experienced
xenophobic and violent behavior based on people's tribes and clans. also, migrants might be
formed several neighborhood enclaves of the same ethnic groups which may live indefinitely
instead of being trans. in developed countries. Politically, the role national government is to
oversee international migration at the regional level, the city leaders are mostly those who
affected the government's legislation and who have to manage uncontrolled migrations into their
cities. Also, stricter immigration policies can restrict migrants, particularly those from poor
countries from transferring their productive workforce to receiving cities.

Migration also has an impact on infrastructure and services. In terms of housing, the
prices of housing units might be exorbitant in prices, the global cities of London, Mumbai, New
York, Paris, and Shanghai are cities among the major cities impacted by migration. Cities in Sub-
Saharan Africa also suffer from severe housing shortages, causing steep inflation in the price of
housing units. A lack of affordable housing has resulted in people living in slums. Education and
employment, health facilities, transportation, utilities, sanitation, and waste management, social
cohesion and community integration, safety and security services might be negatively affected
by migration if the city leaders do not take the necessary measures to overcome.

the second chapter summarizes 22 cities across the globe that have been considerably
affected by migration, beginning with a brief history of migration in the city, elaborating on the
current migration trends, issues and impacts, and the solutions implemented to address the
impact on urban infrastructure and services for the migrant population. It also includes key
lessons and takeaways from each city on managing migration. these cities are Montreal, Ottawa,
Calgary, New York, and Boston in North America, Sao Paulo and Medellin in Latin America,
Berlin, Athens, Paris, Rotterdam, Amsterdam in Europe, Dubai, Amman, and Ramallah in
Middle-East, Pune, Surat, Davao city, Guangzhou in Asia, and Auckland New Zealand, Oceana
and cape town and, Dakar in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The third chapter provides collective analyses of positions of the city leaders featured and
of other cities researched on the challenges and opportunities of migration globally. It also
provides real-world solutions to the issues presented by migration, backed up by case-study
examples from around the world. As common sense, people seek to meet basic needs: a place of
shelter or housing; health and well-being; getting an education and being gainfully employed;
 Saed Hassan 1

and becoming part of a community. It comes as no surprise that these essentials are as important
for migrants as they are for native-born citizens, and of primary concern for cities dealing with
migration. These basic needs were the four challenges most frequently cited by cities covered in
this report. The four challenges cited by most cities are Housing, health, education and
employment, and integration and social cohesion.

Of the 22 cities contributing to this report on migration and cities, an overwhelming 20 of

them indicated the need to provide more affordable and social housing, not only for migrants but
also for the resident population. In Calgary, the waiting list for housing units has reached 3,000
people, whereas, in Paris, the waiting time can be more than 10 years. Cities are under pressure
to build affordable and social housing that is financially viable, complies with design and safety
standards, and can be delivered in a short amount of time. Surat, for example, has built 46,856
housing units in the last decade under several slum rehabilitation programs, decreasing the
proportion of its population living in slums from 17% in 2007 to 4.3% in 2017.

Health was the second major challenge facing cities. Regarding healthcare services, 16
indicated they needed to be improved, with a focus on enhanced infrastructure, provision of
medication, and personnel. Athens, Paris, and Amman specifically addressed the need for mental
healthcare facilities in their cities. This can be attributed to the high number of refugees and
asylum seekers seeking help. Further, Pune has 20 physicians per 100,000 people, indicating an
immense demand for healthcare personnel in the city. Coincidentally, Pune is also a preferred
destination for medical tourism.

The third major challenge is education and employment. A total of 15 cities identified
primary and secondary education of migrants as an equally significant challenge. Of them, eight
cited the issue of migrants not speaking the language of their new city as a challenge for
integration (Calgary, Boston, São Paulo, Berlin, Athens, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and
Guangzhou). For example, about 45% of the foreign-born population in Boston speaks English
as their second language. All of these cities have either implemented or are looking to implement
solutions for tackling language barriers among natives and migrants that could be stepping stones
to long-term migrant integration.

The fourth major challenge is integration and social cohesion. Although cities aspire to
achieve integration and cohesion, 10 of them acknowledged they were facing challenges in
 Saed Hassan 1

integrating migrants. Medellin, in particular, has had a large number of people forcibly displaced
within the city itself – namely, 482,780, or 20% of the city’s population. In response, most cities
have already planned and implemented programs centered on the long-term integration of
migrants (and refugees where applicable). Montreal, Ottawa, and Berlin have the most initiatives
focusing on integration and on attaining social cohesion among its population. Berlin has also
drafted a master plan for integration and security, detailing initiatives in each of the sectors of
urban infrastructure and services aimed at achieving greater integration.

the fourth chapter focuses on city preparedness for future migrations and elaborates on a
framework for cities expected to be impacted the most by the current or future trends in
migration and expands on the role of businesses, government, civil society, and the migrant
community, among others, that would prepare them to manage migration more effectively. The
report proposed how the cities can be prepared for future migration by establishing the
framework for migration preparedness. The first measure to take is reception through evidence-
based Information campaigns and to Partner with media for balanced coverage. The second
framework is Civic Engagement through active participation of migrants in the community
initiatives and planning and welcome programs for migrants. The third measure is to reform
policies by establishing policy coherence at the national and local level, protection of migrants
and their rights, and Institutionalizing data gathering and collection. The fourth framework is
setting a good urban Planning by factoring in migrant population in city plans, ensuring
contingencies for emergencies, and incorporating migrant voices. The last framework is a
leadership manner by building consensus and support on migration and forming city-to-city
partnerships.

Lastly, the fifth chapter draws inferences from the case studies’ main takeaways and the
main topics discussed in the previous chapters. Finally, a roadmap for the long-term integration
of migrants is shared to guide city leaders looking to address migration issues today and in the
future. Cities are where migrants interact with communities, society, and, at least indirectly, with
the host country.

The social, economic, political, and cultural activities in a city play a crucial role in
countering anxiety and fears associated with migration and helping cities transition to being
integrated and inclusive. For instance, cities are must transform from a city having biased
 Saed Hassan 1

perception about migrants, limited civic engagement and migrant community participation,
ineffective or no policy on migrants and their integration, no horizontal approach in urban
planning for migrants, misaligned views between federal, state, and city governments on
immigrants and reactive role-based, and process-driven leadership, to a city having evidence-
based coverage of migrant affairs, active participation of migrants & their communities, clearly
defined policies for rights of migrants in the city, integrated urban planning with future
contingencies, coherent and collaborative approach at all levels of government, and responsive,
outward-looking, and action-oriented leadership.

Finally, the report proposed a roadmap for city leaders to a long-term interaction and
social cohesion. Firstly, city leaders must reach out and engage with immigrant groups through
the use of multiple languages, multimedia programs, and coordination with community-based
organizations. Secondly, they have to collect data and know where the immigrant populations
reside and how they are organized, and develop benchmarks for measuring their levels of social
and economic integration. The third step is to collaborate with stakeholders Set up immigrant
advisory boards or councils composed of the private sector, international organizations, and
NGOs to collaborate for successful integration in cities. The fourth and final step is to lead
Integration emphasize immigrant inclusion and integration as a priority and set a positive tone
for welcoming and integrating immigrants into their communities.

Critique
The reporters aimed to highlight how migration can be an impact a city once they arrive
in the destination country. Considering this, they reached out to 68 cities that are impacted by the
state of migration and captured their stories, challenges they faced, and measurements they took
to address the issue which can be useful for other cities impacted by current migration issues or
might be impacted to the near future.

Migration is an increasingly worldwide issue and this report might be useful for the city
leaders, civil society, and governmental agencies particularly those are about migration issues.
Also, this report might overturn the widespread stigmatization of migration and may reduce the
 Saed Hassan 1

xenophobia of certain societies towards migrants as it exposes the positive side of migrants
through contributing and enriching the economy of their destination cities. Likewise,
complexities and diversity in race, religion, ethnicity, and culture are healthy for the city.

The methodology and how the forum and their contributors have found this result is fairly
well. The collected significant quantitative data, both primary and secondary data, through
reaching out to 68 cities across the globe, narrating their stories of migration and solutions they
have invented to address the issue, and collecting the data written by most of the international
organizations and especially those about habitation and migration issues in terms of local and
world-class agencies include UN DESA and UN-Habitat and they included in their report.

Otherwise, the report only considers the destination country and how it might be affected
by migration issues both positively and negatively but does not give attention to countries that
are brain-drained and lost a huge number of their workable citizens, their economic contributions
to their origin countries, and how these countries detain their citizens and avoid such type of
brain-drains. apart from the conflict and political instability, deteriorating economic conditions,
unemployment, and deficiency of basic social services in most developing and under-developing
countries, the developed world, particularly the western, is a vibrant actor of keeping
disagreements and conflicts prolonged in all under-developed countries by supporting dictators,
giving weapons to rebel groups, coups and military invasions in many cases, which causes
serious famines, displacements and other abject humanitarian situations and eventually which
forced people to migrate and this not mentioned in this report.

Finally, the report is useful for any cities which have been affected by migration and or
expecting to get any future trends of migration if they carefully availed of themselves and take
advantage of the lessons and experiences learned from other cities that volunteered to this report
of their initiatives and approached invented to handle the migration issue. Similarly, city leaders,
governmental agencies as well as civil societies might be used this report as a tool and guideline
to manage their state of migration by following frameworks and roadmaps presented in this
document.
 Saed Hassan 1

Conclusion
In conclusion, The report “Migration and Its Impact on Cities” by the World Economic
Forum with the collaboration of PwC, tries to highlight how significantly overwhelming
migrations around the world impact cities both positively and negatively according to economic,
political, and social impact. As global debates predominantly focus on migrations as a nation,
this report attempts to highlight the state of migration as a whole and particularly at a city level.
Moreover, this report might be useful for the city leaders, civil society, and governmental
agencies particularly those are about migration issues. Also, this report might overturn the
widespread stigmatization of migration and may reduce the xenophobia of certain societies
towards migrants as it exposes the positive side of migrants through contributing and enriching
the economy of their destination cities. Likewise, complexities and diversity in race, religion,
ethnicity, and culture are healthy for the city.

References