Migration without borders: the ethics, economics and governance of free movement

This article develops and discusses the argument that it is difficult to make an ethical or economic case against free movement of workers. The analysis that leads to this conclusion also enables us to demonstrate that free movement is not only feasible but also more efficient compared to restrictive/protectionist policies. Another implication of the analysis in this paper is that a multilateral framework similar to that of World Trade Organisation (WTO) – e.g., a World Migration Organisation (WMO) - would be an optimal arrangement that could enable member countries to tackle externalities and collective action problems associated with international migration. Although free movement and its multilateral governance are not high on governments’ policy agenda, they remain the most rational solutions to international migration problems in the age of globalisation coupled with persistence in international income inequalities.