I must confess that I’m one of those people who have been waiting for the World Bank’s 2023 World Development Report on migration like a new season of a favorite show on Netflix. And yet when I binged the report yesterday, an important element was missing: the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the future of work and economic opportunities and development.
First of all, this is a great report. I appreciate the clarity of its argument because it focuses on the assets and skills of both refugees and migrants first and foremost. Having worked with refugee families and children for years, this appreciation of assets away from needs is so important. And the report’s approach to categorize the potential match with the host country and the motive of the person moving across borders is extremely helpful to its policy recommendations.
As a former World Bank staffer working on policy recommendations and evidence for years, it makes me even happier to see this focus on relevant changes to host country policies.