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Mixed Migration
Refugee Protection and Mixed Migration
A 10-Point Plan of Action
Migrant is a wide-ranging term that covers people who move to a foreign country for a certain length of time - not to be confused with short-term visitors such as tourists and traders. People migrate for a variety of reasons.
Migrants are fundamentally different from refugees and, thus, are treated very differently under international law. Migrants, especially economic migrants, choose to move in order to improve their lives. Refugees are forced to flee to save their lives or preserve their freedom.
Migrants and refugees increasingly make use of the same routes and means of transport to get to an overseas destination. If people composing these mixed flows are unable to enter a particular state legally, they often employ the services of human smugglers and embark on dangerous sea or land voyages, which many do not survive.
To help states address mixed migration movements in a protection-sensitive way, UNHCR in 2006 launched a 10-Point Plan of Action on Refugee Protection and Mixed Migration. The plan sets out key areas where protection interventions are called for. Mixed migration movements are of concern mainly in the Mediterranean basin, the Gulf of Aden, Central America and the Caribbean, South-east Asia and the Balkans.
Mixed Migration General Documentation
- UNHCR's 10-Point Plan in Central America, Western Africa, Eastern Africa and Southern Asia - a three-year project
- Ten-Point Plan of Action for Refugee Protection and Mixed Migration for Countries Along the Eastern and South Eastern Borders of European Union States
- Refugee Protection and Mixed Migration: A 10-Point Plan of Action
- Implementing the Ten-Point Plan of Action in Southern Europe: Activities Undertaken by UNHCR to Address Mixed Migration in the Context of the Mediterranean/Atlantic Arrivals
Implementation of the 10-Point Plan in Different Regions
- Regional Conference on "Refugee Protection and International Migration in the Gulf of Aden"
(Sana'a, Yemen, 19-20 May 2008) - Regional Conference on Refugee Protection and International Migration in West Africa
(Dakar, Senegal, 13-14 November 2008)
Expert Roundtables
- 10-Point Plan Expert Roundtable No.1: Controlling Borders while Ensuring Protection
(Geneva, Switzerland, 20-21 November 2008) - 10-Point Plan Expert Roundtable No.2: Different People, Different Needs
(Tunis, Tunisia, 6-8 July 2009)
