Transcript International Migration - United Nations Economic Commission for

International Migration and the
Achievement of Africa’s
Development Goals
By
Stephen O. Kwankye & John K. Anarfi
(RIPS, University of Ghana, Legon)
1st October, 2013
UN Conference Centre, UNECA, Addis Ababa
Introduction
• Migration’s role in development acknowledged in
ICPD-PoA;
• Africans tend to migrate within the continent than
to the rest of the world (Adepoju, 2010);
• Debate on migration as a brain drain on Africa’s
human resources has shifted and now an enabler
for inclusive economic and social development
(UN, 2012);
• The global migrant stock increased from 92m in
1960 to 165m in 2000 and to 215m in 2010 (World
Bank, 2011).
Research Questions
• What are the challenges facing Africa in terms of
international migration within and outside the
continent both for sending and receiving countries?
• What policies are required to institutionally strengthen
the knowledge and evidence base in order to secure
collection, analysis and dissemination of quality
migration data?
• What is the potential that international migration can
contribute to women’s increased mobility, autonomy
and empowerment and what policies are required to
check abuses of the rights of migrants throughout the
migration process?
• What policies are required to mitigate the adverse
effects of skilled migration in Africa and to capitalize on
the development aspect of international migration?
Migration Trends and Patterns
• The number of migrants worldwide increased by 15%
from 156 million to 178 million;
• About 215m people estimated to live in countries
other than their birth place (World Bank, 2010);
• 31m of this number were said to be from Africa and
30% were made up of the youth (Abebe Shimeles,
2010).
• The number of migrants is recorded to have increased
by 20% (2000-2010) and 38% since 1990.
• Migrants formed more than 10% of the total
population in the more developed regions in 2010 (it
was 7% in 1990) but in Africa, it has been less than
two per cent since 1990 although the numbers have
increased by 13% in 2000-2010) with variations by
region.
Number of International Migrants
(millions)
250
200 156
166
178
195
214
150
100
50
0
1990
1995
Source: UN DESA, 2013
2000
2005
2010
% of Migrant Stock on Total
Population, 1990-2010
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
8.7
9.6
10.3
7.2
8.0
2.9
2.9
2.9
1.8
1.6
1.5
1.5
1.5
1990
1995
2000
2005
2010
World
Less Developed
Source: UN DESA, 2013
3.0
3.1
More Developed
% Annual Rate of Growth of
International Migrant Stock
3
2.7
2.1
2.5
2.3
2.0
1.7
2
1.5
1.1
1
0.6
0.5
0
-0.5
-1
1990-1995
1995-2000
-0.4
More Developed
2000-2005
2005-2010
Less Developed
Drivers of Migration in Africa
• International migration in Africa can be conceived
within the framework of four key drivers:
Economic
Socio-cultural
Environmental and
Political factors
• Irrespective of which of these factors is at play,
perceived and real global and regional differences
in levels of wealth and human development
between poorer and richer societies have
constituted the main rationale behind people’s
quest to migrate.
International Migration Challenges for
Africa
• The emigration of health professionals and other
skilled workers from the continent
• Irregular and cross-border migration and national
security
• Xenophobia and human rights abuses
• Temporary to long-term brain drain
• Increased joblessness in cities and towns and crime
wave involving the youth in particular
• Acculturation and negative practices that are
considered alien to the African tradition
• Feminization of migration and its impact on marital
stability & family formation
• Migration and the spread of some diseases &
infections
• Increased cost of funerals.
Policies to institutionally Strengthen Knowledge
and Evidence Base for Migration Data
• International migration analysis in Africa suffers
from non-availability of current and accurate data
• Invest in regular national surveys on migration
• Use foreign missions to engage the diaspora in
matters related to data collection
• Establish centres within research institutions or
strengthen existing ones and equip them for data
collection
• Establish national centres for information
provision for potential migrants to make
informed decisions.
Contribution of International Migration for Women’s
Increased Mobility and Empowerment
• Increased feminization of migration through
increase in female education & skill acquisition;
• International migration is breaking traditional
barriers that disadvantaged women;
• Gender roles are fast changing and it is expected
to provide further boost to women’s;
empowerment but if not managed well, it could
create more single mothers which in turn could
affect family formation and child development;
• Origin countries should enforce gender-related
laws to protect the rights of women regardless of
geographical location.
Policies to Mitigate the Adverse Effects of Skilled
Migration in Africa
• Engage in bi-lateral agreements for the exchange of both
students and professionals;
• Institute appropriate mechanisms including effective
bonding systems;
• Work out a system for a negotiated contribution of
earnings of sportsmen abroad towards the development of
origin;
• Promote and facilitate voluntary or virtual return to benefit
from knowledge, skills and technological transfer;
• Take measures to reduce the cost of transfer of remittances
• Enforce laws on human trafficking & provide social
protection & support for victims of trafficking
• Integrate concerns about migrant rights in destination
countries in all bi-lateral negotiations to protect the rights
of all migrants
• Adopt comprehensive national migration policies as a
matter of priority.
Conclusion
• As countries in Africa envision harnessing the
demographic dividend set in motion by on-going
demographic transitions in many of the countries,
patterns and trends in international migration will
be a key development planning issue.
• Reaping the benefits will, however, depend on
how Africa manages international migration
within and outside the region through the
adoption and effective implementation of
comprehensive policy actions in addressing the
challenges while maximising the benefits for its
development.