ABSTRACT
Globally, there has been an existing data gap in terms of accurate and comparable data on migration. This chapter presents a critical commentary and overview of two data approaches – the Kerala Migration Survey (KMS) administered by the Centre for Development Studies (CDS) since 1998 and the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs’(UN DESA) “Inquiry,” operational since 1963 and repurposed in 2018 (through the Twelfth Inquiry) to monitor theSustainable Development Goal (SDG) indicator 10.7.2. This analysis reveals how both the micro- and macro-level surveys contribute to SDGs by filling the data gap and providing high-quality, timely and reliable data at the global and local level. By documenting the strengths and challenges of each survey, this study shows how the two approaches can inform and complement each other. Findings from this analysis point to an urgent need to build on the existing data approaches, to find ways to encourage knowledge sharing and to initiatenew partnerships. Together, these goals can help facilitate the designing of evidence-based migration policies that can respond and adapt to the new challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
