Key Migration Facts in Asia-Pacific
Number of international migrants in the region (mid-2020)
42.6 million
Number of international migrants from Asia-Pacific countries (mid-2020)
83 million
Amount of remittance received in the region in 2021
USD 306 billion
Number of disaster displacement occurred in the region
22.5 million

IOM’s Regional Office in Bangkok, Thailand, oversees, plans, coordinates and supports IOM activities in the Asia-Pacific region and is responsible for project review and endorsement. 

The Regional Office provides technical support to Country Offices; liaises with governments, development partners and civil society; and help Member States to build their migration management capacity. It also assists in the areas of emergency response, disaster risk reduction and climate-induced migration.

ROAP thematic specialists work in the areas of: Emergency and Post Crisis; Migration Protection and Assistance; Immigration and Border Management; Migration Health; Labor Migration and Human Develop- ment; and Migration, Environment and Climate Change.

Other specialists work in the fields of Regional Policy and Liaison; Media and Communications; Programme Support; Project Development, Resource Management and Field Security.

The office works closely with the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).

It also supports regional migration management iniatives including the Colombo Process on Overseas Employment; the Bali Process on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Transnational Crime; and the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat.

Asia and the Pacific: Regional Strategy 2020-2024

The Regional Strategy aims to:

  • Address the drivers of displacement and provide solutions for those displaced.
  • Significantly scale up support to governments in enhancing migration management and governance.
  • Strengthen IOM support for migration dialogues and collaborative actions in the region.
  • Enhance knowledge and the evidence-based for effective migration policy, programme support and innovation in the region.