UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has warned that countries who impose barriers for migrants will disadvantage themselves economically.
Mr Guterres said blocking migrants from entering the country legally encouraged illegal migration in a report which was presented to the General Assembly.
The warning comes after the United States pulled out of a UN pact to improve the situations of migrants and refugees.
"Authorities that erect major obstacles to migration - or place severe restrictions on migrants' work opportunities - inflict needless economic self-harm," Mr Guterres said in the report. "They impose barriers to having their labor needs met in an orderly, legal fashion.
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Read more:
Crossing the red line: Europe’s tactics to stem migration
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"Worse still, they unintentionally encourage illegal migration. Aspiring migrants, denied legal pathways to travel, inevitably fall back on irregular methods," he added.
Mr Guterres said migration should be seen as a positive phenomenon and the world must “celebrate migration’s contributions to prosperity, development and international unity”.
Next month, UN member states will discuss ways in which to encourage governments to offer more legal venues for migrants.
However, the US will be absent from the event, which aims to adopt a global compact on the issue by December.
Explaining the US decision to withdraw from the pact, US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said: "Our decisions on immigration policies must always be made by Americans and Americans alone.
"We will decide how best to control our borders and who will be allowed to enter our country.”
The UN report comes as a federal court blocked a move by the White House to end a programme protecting the status of thousands of undocumented migrants that arrived in the US as children.
US President Donald Trump rescinded the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (Daca) programme last year but a San Francisco judge ruled it must stay in place while appeals against the move are in progress.
Daca allows 800,000 immigrants to work or go to school in the US without fear of being deported.
In Europe anti-immigration parties have been performing well in Germany, Austria, Hungary and Poland following the refugee crisis in 2015.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-finals, first leg
Liverpool v Roma
When: April 24, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Anfield, Liverpool
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 2, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
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His favourite book - 1984 by George Orwell
His favourite quote - 'If you think education is expensive, try ignorance' by Derek Bok, Former President of Harvard
Favourite place to travel to - Peloponnese, Southern Greece
Favourite movie - The Last Emperor
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Role Model - My father, Yiannis Davos
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Sustainable Development Goals
1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere
2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all
7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation
10. Reduce inequality within and among countries
11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its effects
14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss
16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development
