UPSC Prelims 2023 Q90: Global Compact for Migration (GCM) — Explained

Consider the following statements:

1. Recently, all the countries of the United Nations have adopted the first-ever compact for international migration, the 'Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM)'.

2. The objectives and commitments stated in the GCM are binding on the UN member countries.

3. The GCM addresses internal migration or internally displaced people also in its objectives and commitments.

How many of the above statements are correct?

  1. Only one
  2. Only two
  3. All three
  4. None

Answer: (d) None

Statement-wise explanation

  • 1: incorrect — Not every UN member adopted the Compact. The UN General Assembly endorsed it on 19 December 2018 (resolution 73/195) by a recorded vote of 152 in favour, 5 against (Czech Republic, Hungary, Israel, Poland, United States) and 12 abstentions. The text had been adopted at an intergovernmental conference in Marrakech on 10 December 2018. It is the first intergovernmentally negotiated UN agreement on international migration, but the word 'all' makes the statement false.
  • 2: incorrect — The Compact calls itself 'a non-legally binding, cooperative framework'. It also says states keep the sovereign right to decide their own migration policy. Its 23 objectives rest on existing international law and the 2030 Agenda, but they create no new binding obligations.
  • 3: incorrect — The GCM covers 'international migration in all its dimensions', meaning movement across borders. It does not cover internal migration or internally displaced persons (IDPs). IDPs fall under a separate soft-law framework, the UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement (1998). Refugees have their own instrument, the Global Compact on Refugees.

How to eliminate

Absolute and legal words do most of the work here. Statement 1 says 'all the countries' adopted the Compact. Votes in the UN General Assembly on migration are rarely unanimous, and the US exit from the GCM process was widely reported, so 'all' should make you doubtful. Statement 2 says 'binding'. UN 'compacts', 'declarations' and 'frameworks' are almost always soft law, and binding rules usually come as a 'convention' or 'treaty'. Statement 3 is settled by the name itself. A compact for 'international migration' deals with cross-border movement, while internal migrants and IDPs stay inside their own country and remain that state's responsibility. Once you have rejected 1 and 2, you are left with 'Only one' or 'None', and only the scope fact decides between them. Remember: GCM = 2018, Marrakech, non-binding, 23 objectives, international migration only.

Know more

The two Global Compacts (2018)

The 2016 New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants started two parallel processes. Both ended in December 2018.

Feature Global Compact for Migration (GCM) Global Compact on Refugees (GCR)
Covers International migrants (people who cross a border for any reason) Refugees (people outside their country who fear persecution)
Adopted Marrakech, 10 Dec 2018; endorsed by UNGA res. 73/195, 19 Dec 2018 Affirmed by UNGA in Dec 2018
Process Negotiated between states Drafted by UNHCR
Legal status Non-binding Non-binding

Key features of the GCM

  • 23 objectives covering the whole migration cycle (a '360-degree' approach). Examples: collecting accurate data, cutting the drivers that force people to leave, saving lives on migrant routes, making remittances cheaper and faster, and cooperating on safe return.
  • Guiding principles: national sovereignty, human rights, a people-centred approach, and a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach.
  • Follow-up: the International Migration Review Forum (IMRF) meets every four years. It replaced the High-level Dialogue on International Migration and Development. The first IMRF met at UN Headquarters, New York, on 17–20 May 2022 and adopted a Progress Declaration.
  • Support: the UN Network on Migration, coordinated by IOM.

Who is outside the GCM?

  • Internal migrants: people moving within their own country, such as India's seasonal and rural-to-urban migrants.
  • IDPs: people forced from home by conflict or disaster who stay inside their country. Their framework is the UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement (1998).
  • Refugees: they are covered by the GCR and the 1951 Refugee Convention.

In the news

The GCM's first four-yearly review, the International Migration Review Forum, met in May 2022 and adopted a Progress Declaration. That likely brought the 2018 Compact back into the news in the year before the 2023 Prelims.

NCERT Concepts to Revise

  • Internally displaced person: Statement 3 asks whether people displaced inside their own country fall within an international migration compact.
  • Internal migration: Statement 3 depends on how movement within a country differs from movement across borders.
  • Refugee: Refugees are handled by a separate 2018 compact, so knowing this category helps you place the GCM's scope.
  • Migration: The basic idea of origin and destination helps you see what makes a migration 'international'.

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