Concept Notes
Good data leads to better policies. Accurate and standardised data collection facilitates efficient and co-ordinated policy responses, allowing a holistic public impact. This stands true for international migration as well. The thematic array of domestic and international policies ranging from trade and labour migration to national security and rights of non-citizens, require concrete data on the stocks and flows of migrants. However, the dynamism and complexity of international migration poses unique challenges to the collection and consolidation of data.
The presence of a multitude of drivers, short-term mobility, circular migration, undocumented status, and systematic underreporting are just some of the factors that make data collection arduous. These complexities result in data gaps which can mean; that the data is uncollected, inaccessible, incomplete, scattered, not disaggregated or unstandardized (Migration Data Portal, 2020). These gaps are then reflected in traditional data collection methods such as censuses and household surveys. Within the census for instance, there may be national differences in the understanding of country of birth, which is a prime indicator to determine an international migrant (UN Principles and Recommendations for Population and Housing Censuses, 2014). Additionally, nation-states disagree on who is an international migrant or a skilled or unskilled migrant. The inter-country diversity in the characterisation of migrants coupled with the disparity in methods of collecting and tabulating migration statistics leads to the lack of international comparability in migration data.
India being a leading source country for international migrants in the world (17.5 million, UNDESA, 2019) is a major stakeholder in the global discourse on migration data collection and management. India’s data on emigration assumes key importance in this light. Emigration data enables effective and impactful policies for; protecting the rights of overseas migrant workers, safeguarding the interests of overseas Indian students, preventing irregular migration, maximising the developmental impact of remittances and overall migration management.
Managing emigration related data has become more important in the light of the changing patterns of outward migration from India. States such as UP and Bihar have witnessed an increase in the number of people migrating to the GCC Countries for work as opposed to the traditionally prevalent migrant sending states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Emigration data is crucial in this regard to develop state governments capacities to facilitate departure and manage reintegration upon return. Building capacities for readmission into domestic labour market has become even more important in light of the return migration propelled by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Currently, emigration related data in India is collected in varying forms by the Bureau of Immigration (BOI), Ministry of External Affairs (through E-migrate)and the National Sample Survey Organisation(NSSO). However, available data is limited to workers migrating on Emigration Check Required (ECR) passports to one of the designated 18 ECR countries . Currently, emigration check is sought only by emigrants having an ECR Category passport i.e. those who have not passed Class 10 and nurses travelling to ECR Countries (MEA, 2020). This leaves out all those emigrants who migrate to ECR countries on Non-ECR passports. There is also a growing need to disaggregate available data on the basis of region, sex, skill & vocational level, and other crucial indicators.
In light of the current policy framework, it is important to devise mechanisms through which a more holistic picture of outward migration from India can be obtained. Globally, it is important to move beyond migration related data produced merely as a result of administrative functions that regulate migration, and collect and record data with multilateral co-operation and partnership. India has a central role to play in this regard. At the same time, it is important to fully utilise existing administrative data collected through immigration checks, arrival cards, residence permits and visas in order to bolster migration statistics. In this light, strategies are needed to increase co-ordination between departments, ministries, national and regional bodies that collect emigration related data. Technological advancements have facilitated the data collection process. In India, the recently launched SWADES Skill Card enables digitised collection of data for returnee migrants in order to conduct skill mapping and enable reintegration into the domestic workforce. More such avenues may be explored through which digitisation can be leveraged.
In view of the above, India Centre for Migration (ICM) is organising a virtual panel discussion on the topic, ‘Strengthening Evidence-based Approach to Migration Policies - Challenges and Solutions for Data Collection’. The discussion will be focused on the following issues –