International Migration Trends in the WesternHemisphere

Migrants have adopted various tactics to reach their destinations. For example, observers have documented an increased use of social media by migrants and migrant smugglers, the use of commercial flights to third countries to facilitate migration routes, and the formation of migrant caravans. The Western Hemisphere’s changing sociopolitical, economic, and climate landscape has shaped migration trends across the region, especially since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of the trends observers have highlighted since the onset of the pandemic have persisted for decades and have taken on new characteristics, whereas others have emerged within the last 10 years.