On 3 and 4 October 2013 the UN General Assembly will hold the second High-Level Dialogue (HLD) on International Migration and Development. In view of such a momentous event, this new issue of MPP is privileged to be able to offer a lead article by Peter Sutherland, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Migration, who sets out his vision and expectations for the HLD Summit. According to Peter Sutherland, the summit must generate action on how to reduce the costs and raise the quality of migration, and it must also determine how states and other stakeholders can deepen their cooperation in solving migration-related problems. In particular, in order for the second High Level Dialogue to be successful, it must achieve four goals: 

• UN Member States should forge a consensus position on incorporating migration into the next iteration of the Millennium Development Goals.
• There must be a commitment by states to help some of the most vulnerable migrants—those affected by acute-onset crises.
• States should acknowledge the success of the Global Forum by committing to its long-term sustainability, including by providing predictable financial support.
• There must be a vigorous debate to help define a set of priorities for the next decade. This includes a better understanding of what changes are needed in the global governance of migration and in the institutions that oversee the movement of people across borders.

The second article in this new issue of MPP is by Quentin Wodon and Andrea Liverani, who outline some of the findings of a recent study on climate change and migration in the MENA region conducted by the World Bank and the Agence Française de Développement (AFD). The article suggests that while climate change is not currently the main driver of migration flows, it does contribute to these flows, and therefore the worsening of climatic conditions are likely to exacerbate future migration flows. 

The third article, by Frank Laczko and Tara Brian, draws attention to the fact that while policymakers have noted the significance of South—South migration, for example in EC Communications and in GFMD debates, virtually no attention is being paid to North—South migration to developing countries. The article discusses a range of recent data defining the nature and scale of current North-South migratory flows, as well as the possible implications for development, both in the North and in the South, of such flows. 

The last article, by Chris Richter, sets out to define the contents and implications of the so-called ‘development enablers', which were included in the new framework prepared by the United Nations Task Team on the Post-2015 Development Agenda. The article explains that migration fits well within a concept of development enablers that focuses on managing the implications of globalization and increased connectivity. Effective policies are therefore important to assisting migration achieve its potential for development, and incorporating migration into the Post-2015 Development Agenda is an essential part of this. 

Migration Policy Practice is a bimonthly journal published jointly by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and Eurasylum Ltd. It only contributes articles from, and is overseen by, senior officials in Government, EU and international organizations, as well as civil society worldwide, working in the field of migration policy.

Should you wish to contribute an article for a future issue of this journal, or to comment on any of the articles published in this issue, please contact Solon Ardittis (sardittis@eurasylum.org) and Frank Laczko (flaczko@iom.int).