The Impact of Migration on Africa’s Development

1766 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: the postive and negative impact of migration

Migration is a complex concept that has had negative connotations attached to it in the past decades, however international focus is now drifting away from its negative effects towards the realisation that it has potential to contribute to sustainable development of both the countries of origin and the migrants’ host countries (IMO). In the last decades, there has been rapid growth in external and regional migration in Africa. According to the World Bank’s bilateral migration matrix data in 2010, it was estimated that about 30.6 million African people (3% of the world’s population) were living in countries other than their country of birth. France being the popular destination, followed by Côte d’Ivoire (8%), South Africa (6%), Saudi Arabia (5%), and the United States (4%). Being collected in 2010, this data may actually not reflect the current migration flow as it has since grown. With this constant growth in population movement, does this migration enhance or hinder Africa’s development?
Prior to tackling the question above it is important to define what is meant by regional migration and external migration in this context. Regional migration refers to migration from one country to another within the African continent. International migration on the other hand is the movement of people from their countries in Africa, to countries outside the continent intending to extend their stay there (IOM). These types of migration can either enhance or hinder the development, depending on which view one takes. There are two opposing views which are: the “balanced growth approach” and “systematic view”. This essay will examine these approaches in order to come to a conclusion on whether migration does enhances or hinder Africa’s developmen...

... middle of paper ...

...ows them to be a key part in the community decision making and to be in control of their own income (Deshingkar and Grimm, 2005).
However for some women, migration can have dreadful effects. Anbesse (2009) conducted a study on Ethiopian women migrants in the Middle East using focus groups. The women who worked as domestic workers, described inhumane working conditions, physical and sexual maltreatment, and denial of basic freedoms. This led to mental illnesses such as depression. They all were aware of others who had suffered physical abuse, at times resulting in injury, permanent disability or even death.

In conclusion, there is no clear-cut answer as to whether migration totally enhances or whether it hinders development. This is because there exists both benefits and hindrances to development as outlined in the essay.

Works Cited

Deshingkar and Grimm, 2005

Show More
Related

  • The Mental Health Effects of Maquiladora Work on Mexican Women

    2805 Words  | 6 Pages

    Migration has been found to have negative effects on mental health because of circumstances surrounding the move, circumstances of the actual passage, trouble adapting to the new culture, breaks in the migrant’s support system of friends and family, and disappointed expectations of social and economic acquisition.

    Read More

  • The Push and Pull of Shanghai, China

    564 Words  | 2 Pages

    This essay will discuss the issue of migration. Migration is movement by humans from one place to another. There are two types of migration, it is immigration and emigration. Immigration is movement by people into the country and emigration is movement by humans, who want two leave countries voluntary or involuntary. Economic, religious, education social and problems are reasons of migration. Mankind often migrates to modern, rich, multicultural countries, towns with high economy and good standard of living such as Prague, Germany, London, Los-Angeles, New York and shanghai. I would like to draw on the city Shanghai.

    Read More

  • Migration And Migration

    1134 Words  | 3 Pages

    Migration is not just about arrival, but also departure and circulation’ (Raghuram and Erel, 2014, p. 150). Explain how different sorts of evidence in DD102 have been used to support this claim.

    Read More

  • Immigration in USA

    1379 Words  | 3 Pages

    Cohen, Jeffrey H, and Sirkeci Ibrahim. Cultures of Migration the Global Nature of Contemporary Mobility. Austin Texas: University of Texas Press, 2011.Print

    Read More

  • American Melting Pot: The Unresolved Immigration Dilemma

    931 Words  | 2 Pages

    International migration in the development context relates both to people that have chosen to move of their own accord , and forced migrants that can ultimately end up contributing to both their country of resettlement and possibly their country of origins if it is ever safe to return . Development meanwhile , is a dynamic process implying growth , advancement , empowerment and progress with the goal of increasing human capabilities . Contemplating for a change the large community of immigrants hopes for immigration laws to be permanently reformed for better opportunities , growth as a nation , and development in modern day American society . The ultimate goal is to enlarge the scope of human choices and creating a safe and secure environment where citizens can live with dignity and equality . We are able to identify the development immigrants have had and can see how highly entrepreneurial they become . Research from the Small Business Administration suggests that immigrants are more likely to start a business than are non-immigrants

    Read More

  • Mental Illnesses: The Mental Health Status Of Refugees

    1509 Words  | 4 Pages

    The social problem we have chosen to address is the mental health status of refugees. Refugees are exposed to a significant amount of trauma due to fear, war, persecution, torture, and relocating. The mental health illnesses that can affect refugees due to exposure to traumas include post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety. Research indicated that refugees relocating from war-torn countries are particularly vulnerable to mental health concerns because many have experienced early traumas and face further post-traumas after relocation (Cummings, et al., 2011). However, despite the prevalence of mental health issues concerning refugees, mental health needs often go unrecognized and untreated.

    Read More

  • The Benefits of Transmigration

    1288 Words  | 3 Pages

    The general causes of migration are poverty, unemployment, economic stagnation and overpopulation. Accepting immigrants has become a humane cause along with foreign investment in these poor countries with the hope that less people will have to migrate. U.S. investment in the global economy has had the reverse affect though, encouraging people to move along with the flow of capital, goods, and services. Saskia Sassen’s article, Why Migration, points out that the “open nature of the U.S. labor market, epitomized by the notion that government should stay out of the marketplace, provides a necessary condition for immigration to occur.”(Why Migration, p.15). The new immigrants from Asian and Caribbean countries have different reasons for migrating. Many of these new migrants do not come from poor countries as previously thought. Many migrant-sending countries had been experiencing increasing economic growth. South Korea had one of the highest gross national products in the 1970's and also was sending a record amount of migrants to the U.S. at the time. These people were migrating towards the promise of freedom and prosperity. In the 1980's the U.N. reported that the U.S. was receiving 19% of all global emigration.(Why Migration, p.15). The U.S.’ foreign investment in export production has disturbed the traditional systems of many countries, displacing subsistence farmers so that commercial agriculture can thrive and produce more exports. Sassen says that the results are that “people first uprooted from traditional ways of life, then left unemployed and unemployable as export firms hire younger workers or move production to other countries, may see few options but emigration.”(Why Migration, p.17). Another cause for migration to the U.S. was the attractive prospect of an abundance of low wage jobs which U.S. citizens were not very interested in. Even educated and skilled immigrants have filled these low wage jobs when they first get to the U.S. These immigrants provide crucial and necessary services for the U.S. citizens and therefore should be welcomed by everyone.

    Read More

  • Human Rights Violation in Syria

    650 Words  | 2 Pages

    This research will begin by evaluating the economic factors of migration, it will then proceed to investigate the social factors. In the process it will be highlighted that the impacts of migration are (im)balanced. Body Paragraph 1 - "The Body" There are a lot of women’s human rights violations in Syria. According to the SNHR, the percentage of women deaths has dramatically increased in 2013, reaching nearly 9% of the total number of victims on April 30, 2013, and at this date, at least 7543 women including 2454 girls and 257 female infants under the age of 3 have been killed, including 155 women who remain unidentified at this date. The SNHR documented the killing of 55 foreign women.

    Read More

  • Rogue States

    2473 Words  | 5 Pages

    On International Migration and International Relations Myron Weiner Population and Development Review, Vol. 11, No. 3 (Sep., 1985), pp. 441-455

    Read More

  • Advantage Of Immigration Essay

    990 Words  | 2 Pages

    Secondly, there are various disadvantages of immigration for countries like overpopulation, illegal immigration, brain- drain and impact on labor market. In today’s globalized era, most of the well educated people move to other country for better wages, better atmosphere as well as good accommodation. Moreover, it’s a big threat to their origin gradually they lose professional work

    Read More

  • Urbanization in Africa

    1087 Words  | 3 Pages

    Urbanization is the movement from a rural society to an urban society, and involves a growth in the number of people in urban areas. Urban growth is increasing in both the developed but mostly in the developing countries. Urbanization is associated with the problems of unemployment, poverty, bad health, poor cleanliness, urban slums environmental deprivation. This causes a very big problem for these developing countries and who are some of poorest countries. Africa urbanization is not as big as most developing countries but is on the rise for it outbursts in city growth lately. (Saundry, 2008).

    Read More

  • Colonialism In Africa Essay

    989 Words  | 2 Pages

    There is no doubt that European colonialism has left a grave impact on Africa. Many of Africa’s current and recent issues can trace their roots back to the poor decisions made during the European colonial era. Some good has resulted however, like modern medicine, education, and infrastructure. Africa’s history and culture have also been transformed. It will take many years for the scars left by colonization to fade, but some things may never truly disappear. The fate of the continent may be unclear, but its past provides us with information on why the present is the way it is.

    Read More

  • Urbanization and Economic Development in Africa

    944 Words  | 2 Pages

    The first relates to Lewis (1977) focusing on the ‘pull’ side. The second view relates to factors affecting the rural sector that drives the ‘push’ of population shifts into cities. Migration to cities may result from displacement due to civil conflicts, drought or other shocks to agricultural productivity and can be seen as a survival strategy. In Africa, people migrate to urban areas primarily in response to the better job and economic opportunities available (‘pull’) there but also because of climate variability and civil wars. (‘push’) Given the persistence of rural–urban wage gaps in both developed and developing countries, migration to urban areas is unavoidable and even desirable as a way to improve allocation of human resources, especially in land-scarce countries. 19 Africans also migrate to escape for example drought, famine, flooding, internal conflict such as civil war, and inequalities in the spatial distribution of social, cultural and political opportunities. Because Sub-Saharan economies are more dependent on rainfall and agriculture accounts for more than twice the share of GDP there than in other developing regions, climate also causes migration to urban areas. Sub-Saharan Africa suffers from a variety of chronic diseases that affect labor productivity and can be exacerbated by lack of rainfall. Scholars claim that climate change is affecting agriculture productivity and accelerating rural– urban migration. Barrios, Bertinelli and Strobl (2006) use rainfall data to show that low rainfall (low agricultural productivity) is associated with higher contemporary urbanization in Africa. Brückner (2012) finds also that a decrease in the share of agricultural value added leads to a significant increase in urbanization for a panel of 41 African countries during 1960–2007. Poelhekke (2011) explains African urbanization mainly by rural–urban migration as an insurance

    Read More

  • South Africa: The Impact of World War II

    2130 Words  | 5 Pages

    Maharaj, Brij. "Economic Refugees in Post-apartheid South Africa – Assets or Liabilities? Implications for Progressive Migration Policies." SpringerLink. N.p., n.d. Web. 5 May 2014. .

    Read More

  • Underdevelopment of Africa

    626 Words  | 2 Pages

    Underdevelopment in Africa is a problem that has been plaguing the countries all over the continent for a very long time. It has so many negative effects on Africans. It has brought about so many consequences, but of all, the economy is the most affected sector because the economic sector controls all other aspect of the society. Underdevelopment in Africa is as a result of many contributing factors which include poverty, illiteracy, very large extended families, corruption and lack of accountability.

    Read More

More about The Impact of Migration on Africa’s Development

Open Document