Following the end of the Second World War, countries across Europe were struggling to rebuild societies shaken by years of destruction and displacement. Cities lay in ruins, economies were fragile, and millions of people had been uprooted from their homes. Refugees, displaced persons, and workers searching for opportunities filled camps and temporary settlements while governments searched for solutions that could help people rebuild their lives.
Based in Geneva, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is a UN agency working in the field of migration was founded in 1951 in response to the large number of internally displaced persons and war refugees in Europe after the Second World War.
As of 2026, the International Organization for Migration has 174 member states and 8 observer states that implement operational assistance programmes for migrants, including internally displaced persons, refugees, and migrant workers.
Prior to the 1950s, migration from Europe had largely been facilitated by private travel agencies and transport intermediaries that provided documentation assistance, medical arrangements, and passage booking.
Before becoming IOM, it was a Provisional Intergovernmental Committee for the Movement of Migrants from Europe (PICMME) in 1951. Then changed its name to the Intergovernmental Committee for European Migration (ICEM) in 1952.
In 1980 it was called the Intergovernmental Committee for Migration (ICM). However, since 1989 finally it is known as the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
In 1992, it was granted observer status at the United Nations General Assembly. In September 2016, the United Nations (UN) Member States, through the General Assembly, unanimously adopted a resolution approving the agreement to transform IOM into an affiliated organization of the UN.
At the same time, thousands of kilometres away, several countries in South America were looking outward. Nations such as Argentina, Brazil, Venezuela and Chile were expanding their agricultural production, developing industries and seeking workers who could contribute skills, labour and experience.
These parallel realities created a rare moment where needs on both sides aligned. Europe had people searching for opportunities and stability, while parts of South America were actively seeking workers and technical expertise to support economic growth.
It was within this context that the Intergovernmental Committee for European Migration (ICEM) – the organization that would later become the International Organization for Migration (IOM) – began coordinating large-scale migration movements across the Atlantic.
Established in the early 1950s to respond to the massive displacement following the war, ICEM helped organize transportation and logistical support for migrants seeking new beginnings abroad.
Along the way, migrants often passed through transit points where administrative and logistical preparations were completed. These stops were essential parts of the journey. Documentation was verified, travel arrangements were coordinated, and migrants received guidance about the next stage of their relocation. What might appear today as routine administrative steps were, at the time, part of a complex effort to organize migration on an international scale.
ICEM also organized orientation activities designed to help migrants prepare for life in their destination countries. Information sessions introduced migrants to practical aspects of their future lives, including language, employment opportunities and social conditions. For many families preparing to settle in unfamiliar places, this information helped ease the transition and offered reassurance about what awaited them across the ocean.
Upon arrival in South America, migrants were received through coordinated processes involving national authorities and local institutions. These reception procedures helped ensure that newcomers could begin settling into their new environments as smoothly as possible. Officials assisted with registration, documentation and initial orientation in the receiving country.
For many migrants, arrival at the port was only the beginning of another journey. ICEM coordinated onward transportation to locations identified by national migration programmes. Some migrants travelled inland to agricultural regions where labour was needed to cultivate land and expand food production. Others continued to industrial centres where factories and growing urban economies required skilled and semi-skilled workers.
Gradually, families began establishing themselves in new communities. Skills learned in Europe were put to work in farms, workshops, factories and small businesses. Over time, migrants became part of the social and economic fabric of their host societies, contributing labour, knowledge and cultural traditions to the communities that welcomed them.
These movements were part of a broader post-war effort to address displacement and economic recovery through organized migration. In its early years, ICEM facilitated the movement of hundreds of thousands of migrants to new countries, helping connect labour needs with people searching for opportunities.
The photographs from this period capture more than moments of travel. They reveal the beginnings of a coordinated international approach to migration management – one that recognized migration as both a humanitarian response and a pathway to rebuilding lives and societies.
As IOM marks its 75th anniversary, these images recall the origins of that work. They reflect a time when international cooperation helped people on the move find new possibilities, while supporting countries seeking to grow and rebuild. The journeys documented here were the starting points of new chapters for families, communities and the evolving global effort to manage migration in a humane and organized way.
Credit to IOM Archive story
Photos sourced from the IOM Archives – Post War Reconstruction Collection (late 1940s–1950s). © International Organization for Migration (IOM)
