Migrations in Our Common Home: Forecasting for Change

Ireland is currently experiencing multiple crises, including in housing, healthcare and childcare. These crises existed prior to the arrival of large influxes of those displaced by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with some linked to the period of austerity due to the recession of 2008. In order to contribute to effective planning for the future, and a human rights based approach to migration, Government must follow through on commitments to end Direct Provision, and begin proactive policies to predict migration, replacing the reactive, and often temporary policies currently in place.

Forecasting migration appropriately would support Government to plan for the future with greater accuracy. A variety of methods currently exist to forecast migration flows, which would allow for more considered approaches to welcoming those arriving to Ireland, regardless of their reasons for doing so. 

In this policy briefing from the Roundtable on Migration in Our Common Home, the members call on Government to devise a forecasting model that takes all forms of migration into account in the formulation of population projections and allows for greater service planning.