Current_Trends_and_Related_Challenges_web

Migrant Smuggling in Asia
Table 33. Economic data for South Asia, 2012
GDP per capita (PPP)
in US$
Unemployment
Labour force
Bangladesh 154 695 368 1 851 5.0%* 71%
Bhutan 741 822 6 591 2.1% 72%
India 1 236 686 732 3 813 3.6% 56%
Maldives 338 442 8 925 28.0%* 67%
Nepal 27 474 377 1 457 2.7% 59%
Sri Lanka 20 328 000 6 146 4.0% 55%
(accessed 6 April 2014);
Available from (accessed 6 April
2014); unemployment= Unless stated otherwise: World Bank, Unemployment, total (% of total labor force). Available from
indicator/SL.UEM.TOTL.ZSReport for Selected Countries and Subjects (Washington, D.C., 2013);
(accessed 6 April 2014).
Socio-economic factors, such as employment
opportunities and access to better education,
together with the existence of well-established
migrant communities and often historic ties
(as in the case of the United Kingdom) largely
explain irregular migration from South Asia (in
particular India, Sri Lanka and, to a lesser degree,
from Bangladesh) to Western Europe and North
America (in particular from India to the United
Kingdom and the United States and from Sri Lanka
to Canada, France and Italy). 42 For example, the
existence of established migrant communities,
including many Tamils who arrived in the late
1980s, is a pull factor for the continued irregular
migration of Sri Lankans to Canada. 43 Similarly,
Italy’s Sinhalese community, at 79,400 in 2010, is
a pull factor for Sri Lankan nationals of Sinhalese
background. 44
Environmental factors also fuel irregular
migration. Flooding regularly affects large parts
of Bangladesh, causing widespread displacement
and heavy economic losses. 45 Environmental
degradation, vulnerability to rising sea levels
and the effects of climate change augment the
problems caused by the scarcity of land. 46 Coastal
areas and islands in the Maldives and Sri Lanka
are similarly vulnerable to rising sea levels and
the effects of global warming and climate change
— factors that in the future are likely to further
encourage irregular migration from these areas. 47
3.3 Profile of smuggled and other irregular
migrants from South Asia
Irregular migration from Bangladesh mostly
involves young men; some sources suggest that
as few as 4.6 per cent of Bangladeshi migrants are
female. 48
Smuggled and other irregular migrants from India
are also mostly young men, 49 although female
migration is significant, constituting up to one
third of irregular migrants. 50 There are reports on
the irregular migration of unaccompanied minors
from India; some appear to have been smuggled. 51
Smuggled and other irregular migrants from India
include both skilled and unskilled workers. The
Gulf region, for instance, attracts Indian migrants
from lower and middle economic classes. These
migrants typically seek employment in unskilled
and low-skilled positions. 52 Most of the migrants
who are smuggled from India to Europe appear
to be of a middle-class background. 53 A 2009
UNODC study into the smuggling of migrants from
Tamil Nadu State found that most of those who
were irregular migrants were young persons from
agricultural backgrounds who had completed
schooling but had not undertaken further
study and were not interested in pursuing the
agricultural work of their parents. 54 A study on the
smuggling of migrants from the States of Punjab
and Haryana to Europe similarly found that most
irregular migrants were young adults from rural
areas with a low level of education. 55
The limited information on the profile of irregular
migrants from Nepal indicates that most of them
are young adults seeking job opportunities abroad.
There are indications that a large percentage of
irregular migrants from Nepal are women. 56
42