Responding to chronic labour shortages in the oil rich Arab states in the 1970s and 1980s, some Asian states have been among the first to develop an active overseas employment or labour migration policy that seeks to provide protection to its nationals working abroad, relieve domestic unemployment and augment foreign exchange earnings. This volume looks at recent trends in labour migration in Asia, the issues and challenges faced by migrants and countries of origin, and policy responses by the state.The report contains articles by labour migration specialists at the ILO, IOM and the APMRN (Asia Pacific Migration Research Network) and includes a compendium of labour migration polices and practices in nine major Asian labour sending states.