Searching for a Better life: Irregular migration in the centre Mediterranean route.

Irregular migration is an issue that cannot be solved through prevention policies but through a correct and profound understanding of migration decision-making. Migration is generally brought on by push factors from origin countries and/or pull factors from the host countries. Push factors are elements that make people want to leave their current location. Whether, Economic turmoil, persecution, war or other violence, and environmental crises are all common push factors. Pull factors are the elements that make a particular destination attractive, such as economic opportunities, freedom, demographic, environmental, and cultural factors. This report will seek to identify trends in trafficking in persons, migrant vulnerabilities, protection risks, the driving factors behind the routes, and the needs of irregular Egyptian migrants across Mediterranean routes. Moreover, wherever possible, this research aims to understand the main drivers of these migration flows and route changes in the observed case. This research is divided into seven sections. The first section introduces the aim, objective, and research main questions. The second section overviews the research context, the trend of irregular migration in the Mediterranean area after the Arab Spring in 2011 and the COVID-19 outbreak, and the decision-making process behind the irregular migration. The third section shows the link between the quality of life and irregular migration. The fourth part includes literature and a desk review of existing evidence from Egyptian migrants and other nationalities from the Region. The fifth and sixth sections introduce the research methodology and the results of the research. The research methodology employed a mixed methodology techniques, with the use of secondary data analysis and field data collection to understand why migrants make decisions in conditions of uncertainty, to travel from North and the Horn of Africa, crossing the Mediterranean Sea to the ultimate destination of Europe. A purposeful selection of informants from North and the Horn of Africa, mainly from Egypt, Sudan, and South Sudan, will be interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire and self-reported questionnaires.