Causes of current international migration
International migration is the circulation of people through borders to reside permanently or temporarily in a country other than birth or citizenship. The United Nations estimate that in 2013 some 232 million people lived outside their country of birth or citizenship for more than a year. This represents just over three percent of the world’s population, which would place all these migrants, if they lived within the same territory, such as the fifth most populated country in the world. Although the number of international migrants has constantly increased, that percentage of three percent of the world’s population has remained stable during the last forty years. Millions of Latin American migrants undertake every year the exhausting road to the north, full of risks and threats of violence and extortion.
International migrants: definitions and terminology of the United Nations worldwide estimates on international migrants include those who live outside their country of birth or citizenship for more than a year. This estimate includes migrant workers, migrants in an irregular situation and refugees, but does not take into account millions of people worldwide that migrate temporaryly or seasonally in the short term from or to another country, usually neighbor, for a few weeks or months every year. However, many of these people are included in the legal definitions of "migrant workers". The most recent and exhaustive definition can be found in: International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of all migratory workers and their relatives (1990)
Migration today is a consequence of a series of economic, political and social factors. Migrants leave their countries of origin due to a conflict situation, generalized violations of human rights or other reasons that threaten their life or their security. Many of them are forced to look for employment elsewhere due to lack of work in decent conditions. They also emigrate to meet with their family members who have already established themselves abroad. Immigration, entry into a country of destination, usually reflects historical migration guidelines, family connections and migration networks. As globalization expands the worldwide circulation of capital, goods, services and technology, migration 21 responds to the growing demand for training and labor in destination countries. These factors, together with the aging of the population and the decrease in the workforce in high -income countries, intensify international migration, including the mobility of labor and qualified workers.
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