Migration Multi-Partner Trust Fund 

Objectives

Fund scope

Managing international migration in the interests of all requires cooperation at all level by all actors. Recognizing this reality, the Member States of the United Nations called for the creation of a fund to support efforts to implement the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM). Following this call, the United Nations system established the Migration Multi-Partner Trust Fund, the only pooled funding instrument in migration.

The Fund, open to all states, is built on the foundations of the GCM Global 360-degree vision. In clustering the Compact’s 23 objectives under five thematic areas, the Fund further allows donors to provide support to GCM implementation in the most balanced manner.

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Guiding principles

The Fund is fully aligned with the GCM’s 10 guiding principles. These are reflected in all areas of work, from joint programming to the Fund’s results framework. They also make up key criteria for assessing, selecting, monitoring and evaluating joint programmes.

The Fund specifically espouses the people-centred, whole-of-government and whole-of society approaches in everything it does. Joint programmes meaningfully engage with over one government line entity and/or local government(s) as well as with a broad range of stakeholders, including civil society, migrants and/or migration affected communities.

The Fund also ensures alignment to human rights, gender-responsive, and child-sensitive programming, and uses markers to assess and monitor all the joint programmes. The Fund has adopted an innovative human rights marker, a first of its kind among UN pooled funds, to ensure that joint programmes are consistent with international human rights law and its principles. The inclusion of migrants and their communities in all phases of the programme cycle, from design to implementatio guarantees that all joint programmes have a meaningful impact on the ground for those who are truly in need.

Migration experts, United Nations organizations, local authorities, migrant and host communities, and migrant organizations are all involved in joint programme design. Programmes supported by the Trust Fund are nationally owned, aligned with United Nations Development System reform measures, coherent, innovative, transparent, and result in stronger cross-border partnerships and networks.  

Governance

Governance arrangements

Steering Committee  

Chaired by the Director General of IOM as Coordinator of the Network, the Steering Committee governs the Fund. It provides oversight and makes - collectively and on a consensus basis - all key decisions related to the Fund such as selecting concept notes, allocating funds, commissioning evaluations, revising the Terms of Reference or Operations Manual, approving the direct costs related to Fund operations, and mobilizing resources.

The Steering Committee represents stakeholders identified by the Global Compact and comprises three members each from the following constituents: UN Network on Migration; donors; countries of origin, transit and destination; and stakeholders. In order to ensure wide representation, membership is rotational on a staggered basis (half the members rotate every year).

Consultative Forum  

To ensure broad-based consultation and stakeholder engagement at the highest level, an Annual Consultative Forum is held. Open to all Member States and stakeholders, the Forum discusses and solicits recommendations for the Fund’s current operations and future direction.

Fund Management Unit  

The Fund Management Unit (FMU) handles operational functioning, providing management support to the Steering Committee, and liaising with the Administrative Agent. Embedded within the Secretariat of the United Nations Network on Migration at IOM Headquarters, the FMU is a lean structure benefitting from the overall support of the Secretariat, as well as other components of the Network.

Administrative Agent 

The Migration MPTF uses a pass-through funding modality, where donors and Participating UN Organizations (PUNOs) channel funding through one UN organization, referred to as the Administrative Agent. The Administrative Agent is the appointed interface between the PUNOs and the donors for administrative matters. The UN Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office (MPTFO) has been appointed to carry out this task, functioning in strict accordance with the UN Sustainable Development Group Protocol on the Administrative Agent for Multi-Donor Trust Funds.

Recipient Organizations 

Programme implementation is the responsibility of participating organizations, including from government and civil society. Each organization/institution is programmatically and financially responsible for resources received. 

Steering Committee Decisions

• Steering Committee Decisions - Feb 2026
• Steering Committee Decisions - Oct 2025
• Steering Committee Decisions - Nov 2024
• Steering Committee Decisions - Nov 2023
• Steering Committee Decisions - Feb 2023
• Steering Committee Decisions - Jun 2022
• Steering Committee Decisions - Jun 2021
• Steering Committee Decisions - Dec 2020
• Steering Committee Decisions - Oct 2020
• Steering Committee Decisions - April 2020
• Steering Committee Decisions - Dec 2019

Projects

Migration Multi-Partner Trust Fund

Migration Multi-Partner Trust Fund is currently supporting count_projects ongoing projectscount_globalInterregional and count_countries country-specific. This table shows the most recently approved ongoing projects.

All project financial information can be found in the Financials section, including delivery analysis by organization, theme and project; project financial status by country and by theme.

Migration Multi-Partner Trust Fund

Results

Focus on impact and results

Getting things done is the priority. The Migration MPTF operational framework and programming approach is highly results oriented. The Fund places an emphasis on monitoring of results and ensuring there is enough evidence to support analysis of progress. From the outset, the Steering Committee incorporated a Results Framework in the Fund’s Operations Manual, placing strong emphasis on: 1) alignment with the SDGs; 2) programmatic alignment to the GCM guiding principles and commitment to sustainability and partnerships; and 3) operational effectiveness and performance.

By outlining specific results and indicators to monitor and assess performance under each of the three areas, the Migration MPTF holds itself accountable to both donors and joint programme beneficiaries. It also forces the Fund to be goal-oriented and prioritize its activities. Moreover, the Steering Committee commissions Fund-wide evaluation to ensure that the Migration MPTF is fit for purpose and adequately equipped to deliver results. The first such evaluation is scheduled for the last quarter of 2022.

Finally, all joint programmes include a solid result framework while participating UN Organizations monitor and regularly report on various agreed upon indicators. In addition, every Migration MPTF-funded joint programme is required to undertake and budget for an end-of-project independent evaluation. These evaluations will contribute not only to accountability, but also creating space for reflection, learning and the sharing of findings, innovations and experiences.

In this section, you will find the latest edition of reports that detail Fund performance and results.

Contacts

Points of contact