India, IOM discuss expanding, diversifying regular migration pathways

India and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) discussed expanding and diversifying regular migration pathways.

Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh met with IOM Director General Amy Pope on Friday (May 8, 2026) on the sidelines of the second International Migration Review Forum (IMRF) of the Global Compact for Migration (GCM) currently under way in United Nations.

“Discussions focussed on expanding and diversifying regular migration pathways and on India’s proactive approach to the implementation of GCM and IOM activities in India,” Mr. Singh said in a social media post.

IOM is the leading UN-related intergovernmental organisation in the field of migration, established in 1951 to promote humane and orderly migration. It provides humanitarian assistance, manages migration flows, and supports displaced populations worldwide.

Mr. Singh also met Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship of Canada Lena Metlege Diab. “Discussions focussed on the Canada-India Migration Initiative and areas of mutual interests in mobility of skilled workforce and students,” he said.

Mr. Singh, who arrived in United Nations Sunday (May 3, 2026), is leading the Indian delegation for the Second International Migration Review Forum, being held under the auspices of the UN General Assembly from May 4-8.

On Thursday (May 7, 2026), he met UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres at the UN headquarters, describing it as a “productive meeting”.

Mr. Singh had delivered India’s national statement at the Plenary session of the IMRF and addressed a side-event organised by the Permanent Mission of India to the UN titled, ‘Leveraging Digital Innovation in Migration Governance-The e-Migrate Experience of India’.