What It Is
The UN Network on Migration is the UN system mechanism coordinating implementation of the , with IOM as coordinator and . The Network was established by the Secretary-General in May 2018 as the primary UN system mechanism for coordinating implementation, follow-up, and review of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM).
IOM serves as coordinator and secretariat for the Network, reflecting IOM's lead role on migration within the UN system.
Composition
The Network includes 38 UN entities working on different aspects of migration. Eight serve on an Executive Committee:
- IOM (coordinator).
- : refugee protection (which intersects with broader migration).
- OHCHR: human rights of migrants.
- : child migrants.
- UN Women: gender dimensions of migration.
- UNODC: trafficking, smuggling.
- ILO: labour migration.
- UNDP: development dimensions of migration.
The broader 38-entity membership includes WHO, FAO, UNHCR field operations, regional commissions, UNRWA, and various specialized agencies and funds-and-programmes.
Cross-Cutting Coordination
The Network's work cuts across the GCM's 23 objectives — from data collection (UNDESA, UNICEF) to anti-trafficking (UNODC) to labour migration (ILO) to migrant rights (OHCHR). Each GCM objective has a UN entity or entities with lead responsibility:
- Data and evidence: UNDESA, UNICEF, and IOM.
- Anti-trafficking: UNODC, OHCHR, IOM.
- Labor migration: ILO, IOM.
- Migrant rights: OHCHR.
- Migrant integration: UNICEF, UNESCO, UN-Habitat.
- Border management: IOM, UNODC.
The coordination mechanism allows the UN system to work coherently on migration despite the cross-cutting nature of the issue, which had previously fragmented across many agencies.
The Migration Network Hub
The Network runs the Migration Network Hub knowledge platform, providing tools, resources, and analysis for governments and other stakeholders implementing the GCM. The Hub serves as a repository for:
- Country implementation examples.
- Policy guidance documents.
- Data and research.
- Training materials.
- Case studies.
The Hub is one of the more substantive UN coordination platforms in the migration space.
The International Migration Review Forum
The Network supports the quadrennial International Migration Review Forum (IMRF) — the principal UN-level review mechanism for GCM implementation. The IMRF brings governments, UN entities, and other stakeholders together every four years to assess implementation progress.
- The first IMRF in May 2022 produced a Progress Declaration that documented early implementation patterns and identified priority areas.
- The second IMRF is scheduled for 2026 and will be the most substantive assessment of GCM implementation since adoption.
Substantive Workstreams
Network workstreams focus on several priority areas:
- Alternatives to immigration detention: developing and promoting alternatives that respect migrant rights.
- Regular pathways: expanding access to legal migration channels.
- Migrant integration: supporting integration policies in destination countries.
- Migrant rights in transit: protecting migrants moving through dangerous routes.
- Climate-driven migration: addressing displacement from climate-related causes.
- Trafficking and smuggling: countering criminal networks exploiting migrants.
- Data and evidence: improving migration statistics and research.
Progress varies across workstreams.
Why It Matters
The Network represents an institutional innovation in how the UN system addresses cross-cutting issues. Rather than creating a single new agency or layering coordination on top of existing agencies, the Network establishes a for collaborative implementation across multiple existing entities.
Whether this model works will be tested by the 2026 IMRF assessment. If implementation has been substantive, the Network model could be applied to other cross-cutting issues; if not, the system may face renewed institutional questions.
Common Misconceptions
The Network is sometimes confused with the GCM itself. The GCM is the framework agreement (adopted by the in December 2018); the Network is the implementation mechanism.
Another misconception is that the Network has independent authority over migration policy. It does not — policy authority remains with national governments; the Network coordinates UN support to government implementation.
Real-World Examples
The 2022 first IMRF Progress Declaration documented early GCM implementation patterns across regions. The 2024 Network workstreams included new initiatives on climate-driven migration and on migrant integration policies in major destination countries. The 2026 IMRF preparation is generating renewed analytical work across the Network's 38 entities.
Example
The UN Network on Migration's 2024 guidance on 'Mainstreaming Migration into International Cooperation' helped shape donor governments' approaches to migration in development assistance.