MMC Readout: Migration at the 2024 UN General Assembly

This September, the Mayors Migration Council’s mayors, key donors, and partners gathered in New York City on the sidelines of the 2024 United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and the UN Summit of the Future.

Here is a summary of advancements from the MMC coalition, including key moments for mayors, new announcements and initiatives from the MMC, and media coverage.

City Leadership at UNGA

• MMC Leadership Board Mayors—Amman, Montréal, and Montevideo—met the UN Secretary-General as members of his Advisory Group of Local and Regional Governments to discuss the role of cities in the UN and the UN Pact for the Future, a roadmap to rebuild multilateralism in the face of multiplying crises. 
• Mayor Valérie Plante of Montréal, Canada said, “I joined this Advisory Group to ensure our collective experience on this and other critical issues of our time helps shape the Pact of the Future and beyond.”
• Mayor Yousef Al Shawarbeh of Amman, Jordan, said, “We call upon the UN and its Member States to recognize the crucial role that cities play and to allocate the necessary resources to sustain this vital work.”
• Following the meeting, the UN General Assembly adopted a Pact for the Future. In line with advocacy from mayors, States committed in the Pact to invest in maximizing the positive contributions of migrants, ensure dignity for all migrants regardless of status, and uphold international refugee law. They recommended localizing the SDGs and improving engagement with cities.
• UN Secretary-General António Guterres said, “We need to ensure that the vision and realities of the local level inform global policy. The local government voices and actions are needed to renew multilateralism.”

Migration in the Americas

• The MMC and Emerson Collective launched the Mayors of the Americas Task Force on Migration, in partnership with IOM and CAF-Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean. This new coalition unites mayors from major cities across the Americas—from Bogotá, Colombia, to San Antonio, U.S.—to implement innovative, city-led migration responses and break through the political gridlock that has slowed national-level responses.
• To kick off the task force and gather input, the MMC and partners convened mayors and donors from across the Americas including: Mayor Carlos Galán, Bogotá, Colombia; Mayor Brandon Johnson, Chicago, U.S.; Municipal President Cruz Pérez Cuéllar, Ciudad Juárez, Mexico; Intendente Mauricio Zunino of Montevideo, Uruguay; Prefect Paola Pabón, Pichincha, Ecuador; Sergio Diaz Granados, Executive President, CAF; Amy Pope, Director General, IOM; and more.
• At the session, Mayor Carlos Galán, Bogotá, Colombia said, “The main vision I have for this task force is to be able to translate this idea that we all have—that migration can be an opportunity—into a reality.”
• Emphasizing the need for meaningful local-national collaboration, Mayor Brandon Johnson of Chicago, U.S. said, “I know I speak for mayors around the globe who expect and need national governments to better coordinate with cities.”
• Stressing the importance of coordination between the U.S. and Mexico, Municipal President Cruz Pérez Cuéllar, Ciudad Juárez, Mexico said, “A large part of economic development in the U.S. begins from migrants. [If migration stops], it would be disastrous for us, for both economies.”
• IOM Director General Amy Pope said,“Mayors are shaping labor pathways as part of a comprehensive approach that will benefit migrants and their local communities.” 
• To elevate this new task force’s approach to migration pathways and economic inclusion, the MMC Executive Director Vittoria Zanuso attended the Fourth Ministerial Meeting on the Los Angeles Declaration on Migration and Protection (LA Declaration) hosted by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. This is the first ministerial to include a subnational perspective. 
• At the ministerial meeting, the Government of Chile emphasized the need to localize the LA Declaration, calling to “decentralize migration management” and “maximize the strength of migration for local development.”
• The U.S. Government announced a new  $686 million investment in LA Declaration partner countries, including funding to expand labor pathways and support the economic inclusion of migrants within the region. Similarly, the Governments of Belize, Canada, and Ecuador announced new pathways projects.

Climate Migration

• The MMC and C40 released new research finding that, by 2050, up to eight million people are likely to move to 10 cities—from Bogotá (Colombia) and Amman (Jordan) to Freetown (Sierra Leone) and Karachi (Pakistan)—as a result of the climate crisis alone if Paris Agreement targets are not met.
• The MMC, C40, and Climate Migration Council also issued a new policy brief on green jobs and migrants, showcasing through more than 30 city-led examples of how migrants are critical to achieving climate goals. 
• The MMC and partners  organized a panel at Goals House to unpack the reports, including Mayor Brandon Johnson of Chicago, U.S.; Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr of Freetown, Sierra Leone; Chobani Chief Communications & Impact Officer Nishant Roy; and C40 Managing Director for Inclusion and Global Leadership, Caterina Sarfatti.
• Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr of Freetown, Sierra Leone, said, “Only eight percent of the $5 trillion required annually for urban climate action is available. It shouldn’t just be cities in the Global South leading the charge—global cooperation is essential.”
• Robert Bosch Stiftung Senior Vice President Ottilie Bälz echoed this call to close the urban climate finance gap at the Climate Mobility Summit. She said “By investing directly into cities, we can accelerate change. But to do this at scale, multi-stakeholder partnerships are essential.” 

Economic Inclusion

• At the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Annual Meeting, the MMC announced a multi-million, multi-year Commitment to Action focused on economic inclusion for urban migrants and refugees.
• At CGI, the MMC Executive Director Vittoria Zanuso said, “Starting in 2025, this initiative will develop new knowledge to show the economic contributions of migrants, build a mayoral advocacy coalition to push for policy change, and invest directly in city-led action through a new funding window of the Global Cities Fund for Migrants and Refugees.”
• This new initiative follows calls from MMC mayors for the organization to step up in this space, including from Intendente Mauricio Zunino of Montevideo, Uruguay who said, “Migration is an opportunity to receive younger people who are able to work, but we need to advance credentialization and links to universities, in order to build an inclusive labor market economy.”

Migration Pathways

• The MMC, Community Sponsorship Hub, and the Global Refugee Sponsorship Initiative hosted an event to celebrate the role of  communities in creating pathways for refugees. The event brought together city leaders, refugees, and refugee sponsors to showcase the incredible welcoming efforts of everyday Americans and growing global interest in creating complementary pathways.
• To ensure that cities are sites of welcome and safety for those forced to flee, Mayor Yousef Al Shawarbeh of Amman, Jordan; Intendente Mauricio Zunino of Montevideo, Uruguay; and officials from Bogotá and Milan met with UNHCR Assistant High Commissioner of Operations Raouf Mazou. They discussed strengthening the MMC-UNHCR partnership and improving UNHCR’s direct support to cities. 
• Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr of Freetown, Sierra Leone; Mayor Talib Ahmed Bensouda of Kanifing, The Gambia; former Mayor Marvin Rees of Bristol, U.K.; and IOM Deputy Director General for Operations Ugochi Daniels met to discuss plans for the Mayors Dialogue. They explored opportunities to build prosperity in African cities by strengthening their institutional, financial, and human capacity so migration is a choice, not a necessity.

MMC Leadership Board

• MMC Leadership Board mayors met during UNGA to set the organization’s new 2025-2030 vision. Key priorities discussed include the importance of supporting mayoral leadership on migration in the face of rising polarization and inaction, climate migration, economic inclusion, pathways, and more. 
• Mayor Carlos Galán of Bogotá, Colombia attended the meeting as the latest mayor to join the MMC Leadership Board. He said, “As a member of the MMC’s Leadership Board, I am eager to share our experiences, amplify the voices of Latin American mayors in global discussions, and champion bold, coordinated action.”

MMC in the Media

• MMC Executive Director joins the mayors of London, Bogotá, and Springfield to discuss how city leaders are reshaping the conversation on migration (The Washington Post).
• In a joint op-ed, the Executive Directors of the MMC and C40 Cities  urge global leaders to direct climate finance to cities, remove policy barriers for migrants, and invest in green jobs (Reuters). 
• The mayors of Bogotá, Chicago and Ciudad Juárezshare the importance of local-national coordination for migration (CBS). 
• The Mayor of Bogotá  joins the MMC to share the experiences of  Bogotá on a global scale and highlights the economic contributions of Venezuelan migrants in Colombia (VOA, El Tiempo, Semana). 
• The Mayor of Montréal joins global mayors at UNGA 79 to advocate for the role that cities play in managing migration and finding solutions at a city level (CBC).