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IOM Today

An intergovernmental organization established in 1951, IOM is committed to the principle that humane and orderly migration benefits migrants and society.

  • 146 Members and 98 observers
  • More than 450 field locations
  • More than 7,800 staff working on more than 2,700 projects
  • More than US$ 1.3 billion expenditures in 2011

  IOM Resettlement Assistance:  
  Helping Refugees Begin a New Life  

For more than 60 years, IOM has played a vital role in resettlement around the world.

Enshrined in Article 1 of Chapter 1: Purposes and Functions, IOM's constitution mandates the Organization to

  1. make arrangements for the organized transfer of migrants, for whom existing facilities are inadequate or who would not otherwise be able to move without special assistance, to countries offering opportunities for orderly migration
  2. concern itself with the organized transfer of refugees, displaced persons and other individuals in need of international migration services for whom arrangements may be made between the Organization and the States concerned, including those States undertaking to receive them; …

Resettlement is a sometimes unrecognized yet compelling instrument and symbol of international solidarity and burden sharing to find a durable solution for refugees who are either unable to return to their country of origin for fear of continued persecution or do not have the option to stay in their country of asylum. 

Resettlement begins with the processing of refugees' requirements and ends with their placement in a local community in the country that has accepted them for permanent settlement.

IOM works closely with governments, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), non-government organizations and others.  While most resettlement cases are referred to IOM by UNHCR, in some instances, countries refer individuals and families directly to IOM for resettlement.

A resettlement country provides refugees with legal and physical protection, including access to civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights similar to those enjoyed by nationals. Many refugees eventually become naturalized citizens.

Leading resettlement countries are the United States, Canada, Australia, and the Nordic countries. Other European and Latin American countries recently began accommodating refugees as well. 

Most refugees that IOM has resettled in recent years have come from Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.

IOM's resettlement assistance includes the following activities:

  • Processing legal documents and requirements to facilitate the safe and expedient transfer of refugees accepted for resettlement across international borders all the way up to their destination country.
  • Medical screening and counseling to ensure that refugees are fit to travel and meet the requirements of the host country.  This includes the provision of treatment if and when needed.
  • Cultural orientations to give refugees realistic expectations of resettlement through briefing them about life, basic adaptation, and culture in the resettlement country.
  • Language and skills training to equip refugees with basic communication and vocational skills to be able to quickly adjust and become self-sustaining.
  • Pre-departure orientations on traveling by air, packing, and the importance of travel documents since most refugees are first time plane travelers.
  • Movement assistance to provide in coordination with authorities, non-governmental organizations and others:
    • transportation of the refugees from their current location to their future host community
    • transit and arrival assistance
    • arrangement of medical or non-medical escorts as necessary
    • health services upon arrival
    • arrangement to meet with family/sponsor agencies receiving the refugees

Founded in 1951, IOM initially assisted in the resettlement of Europeans who were displaced in the aftermath of World War II.   Since then, the number of people resettled by IOM has grown rapidly.  As of 2008, IOM had assisted in the resettlement of 15 million refugees worldwide.

IOM's Assistance Over Years
1960 1 million refugees
1973 2 million refugees

1980

 ICEM becomes ICM
3 million refugees
1985 4 million refugees
1989 ICM becomes IOM
1990 5 million refugees
1991 6 million refugees
1993 7 million refugees
1997 10 million refugees
2000 11 million refugees
2005 13 million refugees
2008 15 million refugees