A/69/302 physical, social or political barriers. Development — real development — is about removing barriers and expanding choices.” 3 25. It is internationally recognized that migrants are drivers and enablers of development. 8 Migrants contributed to efforts to attain the Millennium Development Goals by, among other things, boosting household income, resulting in improved health and greater school enrolment. At the national level, remittances to developing countries account for a significant proportion of the gross domestic product and are an important source of foreign currency earnings, supporting national income and allowing countries to pay for critical imports, gain access to capital markets and pay lower interest rates on sovereign debt. 9 Migrants increase domestic demand for goods and services, which in turn increases total economic output, thereby creating jobs in the country of destination. At the regional and global levels, migration addresses global talent and labour shortages. 26. In 2013, migrants sent approximately $404 billion in remittances. 10 Migrants who moved from countries with a low human development index to countries with a higher index experienced, on average, a 15-fold increase in income, a doubling in education enrolment rates and a 16-fold reduction in child mortality. 11 If the human rights of migrants are effectively promoted, respected and protected within well governed migration processes, such development outcomes can be greatly enhanced. 27. The Special Rapporteur would like to strongly emphasize, however, that migration is first and foremost about human beings who are rights holders exercising their personal freedom to move and whose dignity can be defined by how much they are allowed to exercise options in defining their own future and that of their family, without being only constrained by status and circumstances. It is therefore crucial to facilitate mobility while effectively promoting and protecting the human rights of migrants within well-governed migration processes. Development is no longer defined only from an economic lens, given that sustainable development includes economic, environmental and social dimensions. All subjects of development, including migrants, should equally enjo y their human rights. Unfortunately, the reality is that many migrants continue to live and work in precarious and inequitable conditions. 28. Development targets that pay no attention to which groups are being left behind can be met without having any real impact on ensuring a more equal and just world. The focus should not be on simply reducing the cost and increasing the flow of remittances, but rather on the human cost of migration. In many countries, the most marginalized and exploited migrants are those who are in an irregular situation, have a precarious labour contract, are low-skilled, are children or adolescents, are women, in particular in domestic work, or are working in the construction, hospitality, extraction, fishing and agricultural sectors . Such migrants __________________ 8 9 10 11 14-59006 See www.iom.int/files/live/sites/iom/files/What-We-Do/docs/Dhaka-Declaration.pdf. United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, Maximizing the Development Impact of Remittances (UNCTAD/DITC/TNCD/2011/8). World Bank, “Migration and remittances: recent developments and outlook”, Migration and Development Brief, No. 22, 11 April 2014. Available from http://siteresources.worldbank.org/ INTPROSPECTS/Resources/334934-1288990760745/MigrationandDevelopmentBrief22.pdf. United Nations Development Programme, Human Development Report 2009: Overcoming Barriers — Human Mobility and Development (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.09.III.B.1). 7/26