In 2010, IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) programme started its activities in Pakistan as part of IOM’s emergency flood response programme. Over the years, DTM has evolved into a comprehensive programme covering a wide range of activities. The DTM programme works closely together with a wide array of stakeholders, including government ministries and national and sub-national statistical organizations, UN agencies, and specialized research institutes. Its activities are instrumental in providing stakeholders with an evidence-base to effectively address humanitarian, transition, and development needs within the country. 

In 2017, DTM started the implementation of its Flow Monitoring (FM) activities. DTM conducts FM data collection at two designated borders, namely Torkham and Chaman–Spin Boldak, to identify cross-mobility patterns and profiles of Afghans who are returning from Pakistan to Afghanistan.  DTM-Pakistan actively coordinates its data collection efforts with the DTM programme in Afghanistan.

As part of the 2022 flood response, DTM launched mobility tracking operations in flood-affected settlements or settlements that hosted temporary displaced persons (TDPs) across 11 districts in Balochistan and Sindh to provide partners with timely information on the displacement situation. Since then, DTM’s mobility tracking has expanded to cover 30 districts across three provinces (Balochistan, Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) and collects information on the multisectoral needs and recovery needs at the settlement level, in addition to the displacement situation. 

In May 2023, DTM scaled-up its mobility tracking efforts to support the ongoing response efforts for Afghans in Pakistan. DTM’s Afghan response mobility tracking has been implemented in 33 districts across Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, and Sindh, and aims to provide stakeholders with up-to-date data on the presence and multisectoral needs of Afghans in the country. The first analytical outputs will be available during the final quarter of 2023.  

Furthermore, under the European funded project “Displacement Tracking Matrix Regional Evidence for Migration Analysis and Policy (DTM REMAP), from 2019 to 2022, DTM implemented two household surveys. The first survey was the survey on Drivers of Migration (SDM) which aimed at better understanding the drivers of Pakistani international out-migration. The second survey was the “Returnee Longitudinal Survey (RLS)”. The purpose of RLS was to improve understanding of return migrants’ profiles, vulnerabilities and needs, as well as sustainable return and reintegration outcomes in the short- and medium-term.