Urban Migration and Cities

Cities attract both internal and international migrants and now host the majority of the forcibly displaced — around 60% of refugees and up to 80% of internally displaced persons (IDPs).

Urban areas offer jobs, services, facilities and networks that make them key destinations for both short- and long-term stays. Established migrant communities can also provide guidance and support to newcomers, reducing risks and vulnerabilities. Yet cities can also expose refugees and migrants to insecurity, exploitation, and poor living conditions — especially in contexts of rapid growth or limited urban planning.

Cities are not only destinations — they are also launch points, stopovers, and return hubs in migration journeys. Many refugees and migrants pass through several cities while earning money, arranging transport, or connecting with networks before continuing onward. For others, cities become places to stay, rebuild, and integrate. In this way, urban spaces shape migration trajectories, offering both opportunities and challenges along the way.

Migration policies are usually designed and debated at national levels, but the reality of mixed migration unfolds locally — most often in cities. Urban authorities are responsible for the practical dimensions of migration: housing, healthcare, education, transport, and safety.

For migration to be effectively managed, urban and migration policies must be connected. Ignoring one means weakening the other. As mixed migration increasingly intersects with urbanisation, cities have become vital spaces for inclusion, service delivery, and crisis response — as shown during the Covid-19 pandemic, when many municipalities took the lead in assisting migrants even when national responses lagged behind.

Many large cities around the world demonstrate more open, tolerant and inclusive attitudes towards migrants than rural or isolated areas, as MMC research has shown. Urban diversity — across faiths, genders, ages and abilities — tends to foster more welcoming approaches to newcomers.

This contrast also reflects the politics of scale:

• At the national level, migration debates are often polarised and driven by ideology or electoral concerns.
• At the city level, governance is more pragmatic. Municipal leaders must manage day-to-day realities such as service provision, safety and social cohesion, making their approach to migration more solutions-oriented and less political.

This has given rise to “sanctuary cities” — urban areas that actively adopt inclusive policies towards migrants and refugees, even when national governments pursue restrictive agendas. Increasingly, cities and mayors are also collaborating across borders to share solutions and advocate for a stronger role in global migration governance.

Migration brings economic dynamism, cultural diversity, and innovation to cities, especially when newcomers fill labour gaps or start small businesses. However, rapid or poorly managed migration can strain infrastructure, housing and services, and create tensions if inclusion policies are weak. The impact of migration on cities is therefore twofold — enriching but complex — requiring data-driven and inclusive urban planning.

Many cities — especially coastal ones — are on the frontline of climate impacts such as rising sea levels, drought and water scarcity. These environmental pressures can drive new migration to cities and cause secondary displacement within or between urban areas. Migrants and displaced populations are often the most exposed to such risks, highlighting the need for climate-resilient and inclusive urban policies.

The pandemic exposed the interdependence between mobility and urban life. Lockdowns, job losses and restrictions hit migrant workers in cities particularly hard, revealing their economic vulnerability and limited access to services. In some countries, internal migrants left cities en masse; in others, international migrants became stranded. Yet many municipalities stepped in to fill gaps left by national authorities, showing how cities play a key role in crisis response and inclusion.

Effective urban planning depends on understanding who lives in the city — including people without regular status or in transit. Yet migration data at city level remains scarce, limiting cities’ ability to plan services, protection and inclusion measures.

MMC’s 4Mi Cities helps fill this gap by collecting first-hand data on the experiences, needs and aspirations of refugees and migrants living in cities, directly informing local policy and response.

Although cities lack the sovereignty of states, this can make them more flexible and collaborative. Increasingly, mayors and city networks cooperate across borders to address migration — sharing good practices, advocating for inclusion, and building their role in global migration governance. As political theorist Benjamin Barber argued, cities’ relative lack of sovereignty may actually strengthen their ability to find common, practical solutions to global challenges such as migration.