Introduction: mobility, migration and development

The movement of people and the associated flows of tangible and intangible resources have attracted increasing attention from policy-makers and practitioners, as well as researchers, seeking to understand the processes involved and the potential of such movements for enhancing debates around mobility which includes not just migration, but other forms of movement such as commuting and journeys to school. This paper considers key dimensions of the perceived relationships between mobility and development, highlighting how mobility can be both a route to challenge social exclusion and poverty as well as a mechanism for reinforcing such disadvantage. The paper also provides an overview of the key themes addressed in the eight papers making up this special issue on mobility and migration.