Globally speaking, migration today has risen to an unprecedented level. The United Nations, IOM and ILO estimate that the number of persons living outside their country of origin has reached 175 million, more than twice the number a generation ago. A series of interrelated factors have contributed to the significant rise in migration this century including the increased facility of travel and communication, persisting regional and sub-regional economic disparities, natural disasters, conflict, political instability, and the porosity of borders, to name but a few.