UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres addresses the General Assembly. UN Secretary General: the world must move from fear of migration to cooperation in managing its flows Refugees and migrants
Presenting the annual report to the General Assembly on the implementation of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on states to “choose cooperation over chaos.”
Politicization of migration
Guterres sharply criticized the politicization of migration, saying that in many countries migrants are used “to score political points – with devastating human consequences.” He stressed that migrants are increasingly being dehumanized and denied basic rights, despite their significant contributions to societies.
According to the UN chief, restricting legal routes only pushes people into the hands of criminal networks: “When routes are closed, migrants do not disappear. They are pushed into exploitation and into the hands of smugglers.”
The Secretary General recalled that thousands of people die or go missing every year due to the lack of safe alternatives. “Migration is not a crisis,” he emphasized. “The crisis is our inability to manage it together.”
Migration is not a crisis. The crisis is our failure to manage it together. The report highlights that countries have made progress, from expanding legal channels to improving search and rescue systems. However, according to Guterres, these efforts are “far from what today’s realities require.”
He recalled that migration is a global phenomenon that cannot be regulated alone, especially against the backdrop of climate change, demographic shifts and economic transformation.
Two key directions
Guterres identified two key areas for further action: expanding and simplifying regular migration routes, as well as investing in education and job creation in countries of origin. The Secretary General called for intensifying the fight against human trafficking, making ethical recruitment the norm, ending the practice of detaining children on migration grounds, taking climate factors into account when planning migration policy, reducing the cost of remittances and strengthening social cohesion.
The UN head paid special attention to the need to counter “toxic narratives.” He said the world must “choose cooperation over chaos and dignity over discrimination.”
The Secretary General expressed the hope that the upcoming International Migration Review Forum will be a moment of transition from discussions to concrete actions.
“Migration is a story of courage, resilience and mutual benefit. Our task is to ensure that it never turns into a story of death and despair,” Guterres emphasized, calling for the Global Compact to be made a reality “in every region, on every route, for every migrant.”