Chapter 10 is a follow-up analysis to World Migration Report 2015, which was devoted to a single theme: the relationship between migration and the cities of the world.  Building on the foundations of WMR 2015, the chapter looks at the role of the modern city in migration governance, taking advantage of some of the recent research on the evolving nature of cities and of their roles in the world. This includes discussion of “sanctuary cities” and, more generally, the role of cities in responding to the recent “refugee crisis”.

This chapter shows that cities are not only the major magnets for the world’s top talent; they are also the destinations for those millions of migrants seeking employment, greater security for themselves and their families, and the hope of a better future. As larger cities become in some ways less liveable due to congestion and crowding, smaller cities will become increasingly sought after as destinations, and these cities, perhaps with less experience in managing migration and integration, will benefit from the learned wisdom of others. This chapter is also a call for enhanced mutual exchanges of knowledge and experience among cities, their elected leaders, their policy officials, their planners and the many institutions within them whose actions contribute to the outcomes of the migration processes.