The notion of migration as being at least partly about ‘choice’ is deeply rooted in both academic thought and public policy. Recent contributions have considered migration choice as step-wise in nature, involving a separation between ‘aspiration’ and ‘ability’ to migrate, whilst stressing a range of non-economic factors that influence migration choices. But such nuances have not prevented the emergence of a significant area of public policy that seeks to influence choices to migrate from Africa through ‘irregular’ channels, or at all, through a range of development interventions. This paper explores evidence from West Africa on how young people formulate the boundaries of such choice. Drawing on approaches in anthropology and elsewhere that stress the value of a ‘future-orientated’ lens, we show how present uncertainty is a central framing that fundamentally limits the value of thinking about migration as a choice. This has important implications for policy on ‘migration and development’.

Black, R., Bellagamba, A., Botta, E., Ceesay, E., Cissokho, D., Engeler, M., et al. (2022). Migration drivers and migration choice: interrogating responses to migration and development interventions in West Africa. COMPARATIVE MIGRATION STUDIES, 10(1) [10.1186/s40878-022-00283-3].

Migration drivers and migration choice: interrogating responses to migration and development interventions in West Africa

Bellagamba, Alice;Vitturini, Elia;
2022

Abstract

The notion of migration as being at least partly about ‘choice’ is deeply rooted in both academic thought and public policy. Recent contributions have considered migration choice as step-wise in nature, involving a separation between ‘aspiration’ and ‘ability’ to migrate, whilst stressing a range of non-economic factors that influence migration choices. But such nuances have not prevented the emergence of a significant area of public policy that seeks to influence choices to migrate from Africa through ‘irregular’ channels, or at all, through a range of development interventions. This paper explores evidence from West Africa on how young people formulate the boundaries of such choice. Drawing on approaches in anthropology and elsewhere that stress the value of a ‘future-orientated’ lens, we show how present uncertainty is a central framing that fundamentally limits the value of thinking about migration as a choice. This has important implications for policy on ‘migration and development’.
Articolo in rivista - Articolo scientifico
Choice; Development; Migration; Uncertainty; West Africa;
English
7-mar-2022
2022
10
1
10
open
Black, R., Bellagamba, A., Botta, E., Ceesay, E., Cissokho, D., Engeler, M., et al. (2022). Migration drivers and migration choice: interrogating responses to migration and development interventions in West Africa. COMPARATIVE MIGRATION STUDIES, 10(1) [10.1186/s40878-022-00283-3].
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
d87c7143-9d7d-4fa0-902d-04a34a6565c9.pdf

accesso aperto

Tipologia di allegato: Publisher’s Version (Version of Record, VoR)
Dimensione 1.12 MB
Formato Adobe PDF
1.12 MB Adobe PDF Visualizza/Apri

I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/10281/358382
Citazioni
  • Scopus 12
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? 5
Social impact