Bridging the Gap: Migration Policies and People’s Policy Perspectives in Balti and Cahul (Republic of Moldova)

Migrant needs and the policies aimed at supporting them are often evaluated in isolation, making the formulation of effective policies that respond to the reality on the ground more difficult. Seeking to bridge this gap, two major IOM global initiatives have been identified as crucial data sources to enable a comprehensive assessment of the needs of migrants in order to inform policy and programmatic responses: the Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) and the Migration Governance Indicators (MGIs). These two methodologies have been combined to develop an innovative approach in two municipalities of the Republic of Moldova – Balti and Cahul – selected based on their geographically strategic positions on main migration corridors, socioeconomic profiles and local authorities’ close collaboration with IOM. 

The goal of this report is to analyse the extent to which migration policies and services available in Balti and Cahul address the needs of migrants, directly from migrants’ perspective. Specifically, the evaluation considers the characteristics and needs of migrants and the local migration governance landscape. The analysis is based on data collected from a DTM survey in Balti and Cahul in February and March 2023 and the local MGI assessments conducted in both municipalities between September 2022 and August 2023. The results of the simultaneous analysis of data from both tools are used to inform tailored policy and programming recommendations, effectively bridging the DTM’s operational humanitarian approach with the policy-focused perspective of the MGIs.