More than 16,000 migrants were returned home from Libya in 2018 under a voluntary return program run by the UN's migration agency, the IOM. Many of them had tried - and failed - to cross the Mediterranean to Europe.
More than 1,000 Ghanaians have been assisted to return home under a program run by the UN migration agency IOM since 2017. The IOM says it offers people the chance to go home 'with dignity', as well as helping them to reintegrate.
The French asylum and immigration law passed in September contained a new measure: As of January, the immigration authorities will offer voluntary return assistance for migrants detained in administrative retention centers (CRA). The government set a goal of 3,000 voluntary returns for the year 2019.
Nezam (not his real name) was an asylum seeker in Germany for two years until he decided to return to Afghanistan through a voluntary return program. What prompted him to return and what help did he receive?
The International Organization for Migration facilitated the return of 418 migrants from Yemen with the first voluntary repatriation flight from the country in more than three years.
The UN agency International Organization for Migration (IOM) has resumed return flights from southern Libya, which had been suspended for a year and a half, with a charter that took 120 Nigerian migrants from the Libyan city of Sebha to Nigeria.
1,257 Afghan children have left Germany since 2016 to return to Afghanistan with voluntary return programs. The Left party in Germany raised concern over a lack of perspectives for returning minors.
The International Organization for Migration has reported that 1,857 irregular migrants died while trying to reach Europe by sea this year. The UN agency also said that a reported 94,676 migrants and refugees reached Europe by crossing the Mediterranean in 2018, while over 13,000 were repatriated from Libya as part of the Voluntary Humanitarian Return (VHR) program.
Germany's development minister has said fewer migrants from Eritrea are expected now the country has made peace with Ethiopia. In an interview, Eritrea's top diplomat said those who have already left are free to return.
International Organization for Migration (IOM) said nearly 11.000 stranded migrants returned from Libya through its Voluntary Humanitarian Return (VHR) Program, expressing concern over the alarming increase of the detained migrants' number in Libya's centers.
A German government program aims to help migrants who choose to leave Germany voluntarily to find jobs and prospects in their home countries. But critics say the results of the program are little more than lip service.
The UN International Organization for Migration (IOM) says it has resumed voluntary repatriations of migrants from Yemen. Repatriations were halted last month due to military operations in the city of Hodeida.