International Migration Institute

Dr. Valeria Pulignano gives a presentation for the International Migration Institute Trinity Term 2017 seminar series.

Ibrahim Sirkeci explores integration patterns of English-speaking movers in Turkey and those of Turkish-speaking movers in Britain International migration studies have largely focused on movers from the developing countries, or the South. Nevertheless, about one third of the global human mobility happens within the North and from North to South. Hence there is a need for reconsidering our understanding of global human mobility. Despite the hierarchy in the language used in describing these two categories of movers, there are similarities in causes, mechanisms and lived experiences. In this study, integration patterns of English-speaking movers in Turkey and those of Turkish-speaking movers in Britain have been contrasted. Particular attention has been paid to the perceived discrimination and integration outcomes. Drawing on analyses of census data from both Turkey and the UK, labour force survey data and the findings of a survey conducted from 2014 to 2016, patterns of integration are discussed.

In the context of Ghanaians in the UK, Geraldine Adiku explores how migrant remittance practices are not only from 'developed' to 'developing' country; many are sent in the reverse direction, a fact largely ignored by scholarship on the topic Remittances have acquired considerable significance on the agendas of development establishments, especially the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) since the turn of the century. The widespread attention that remittances sent from ‘developed’ to ‘developing’ countries have received has, however, ignored the fact that many remittances are sent in the opposite, or reverse, direction. Such reverse remittances can be conceptualised as transfers, which move from poor migrant origin areas to migrants in wealthy destination areas. This practice has been largely under-represented in what is now an extensive remittance literature. I investigate the other side of transnational economic exchanges between migrants and their relatives. Using a matched sampling metho

Antony Otieno Ong'ayo presents an alternative approach to the management of migration in the context of EU–Africa migration relations The effects of contemporary migration dynamics within and from Africa to Europe increasingly translate into cross border challenges facing the European Union. The socio-economic and political factors shaped by the processes of globalisation continue to generate different dimensions of migration in Africa. These dynamics have become major policy challenges in the management of migration and leveraging migration of development. Current policy initiatives are informed by top-down approaches that attach different opportunities and restrictions to them through categorisations such as irregular migrants, asylum seekers, failed asylum seekers, illegal migrants, skilled migrants, highly-skilled migrants, second generation and return migrants. However, these approaches do not take into account the agentic responsibility of African migrants and the communities that they have established

Olivette Otele explores how histories of transatlantic slavery impact on contemporary questions of migration Transatlantic slavery is a complex history of encounters between people of African and European descent. It is also a history of migrations, trade and subjugation. In this presentation, I look into the displacement of people from West Africa from the 17th to the 19th centuries. I ultimately aim at understanding how historians measure the impact of transatlantic slavery in Africa and its economic, social and cultural legacies. The presentation will consequently delve into Eltis’ and Lovejoy’s income per capita theories and explore Manning’s loss of workforce simulation model. It will then turn to histories of the territories from which Africans were captured by looking at the relationships amongst French and British traders, colonial administrators and local populations.

Examining the ways in which gender has been used as a category of analysis in the current refugee 'crisis', and whether in effect international organisations, NGOs, and EU governments have really offered any protection to victims of gender violence For many years gender was not taken into account in asylum and refugee policies and legislation. More recently, following pressure from women’s groups, UNHCR, followed by various regional and national authorities, have introduced measures on protection of victims of gender-based violence into their asylum and refugee policies and legislation. However, as the experience of the current refugee 'crisis' illustrates, these policies are not always adequate in guaranteeing real protection to those who may be victims of this type of violence. In this seminar I will examine the current 'crisis' from a gendered perspective, to discuss the ways in which gender has been used as a category of analysis, and to analyse whether in effect international organisations, NGOs, and E

Lisa Åkesson unsettles the image of migrants’ border crossing as solely taking place in South–North direction by looking at the contemporary postcolonial Portuguese labour migration to Angola Global discourses as well as migration regimes often build on and reinforce the image of migrants’ border crossing as solely taking place in South–North direction. This paper unsettles this idea by looking at the contemporary postcolonial Portuguese labour migration to Angola. In particular it focuses on the Portuguese migrants’ relation to the Angolan party-state, and the ensuing (re-) articulation of Portuguese and Angolan postcolonial identities. The paper demonstrates that while the most influential Portuguese are closely allied with the Angolan political elite, other Portuguese migrants are in a vulnerable position in relation to the Angolan party-state, and many struggle to secure immigration documents. The vulnerability of the non-elite Portuguese brings about feelings of postcolonial score-setting among some An

Vicki Squire examines similarities and differences in practices of ‘governing migration through death’ across the US–Mexico (Sonoran) and in the EU–North African (Mediterranean) contexts Border deaths have become an established feature of contemporary migratory politics in both Europe and the US. This article examines similarities and differences in practices of ‘governing migration through death’ across the US–Mexico (Sonoran) and in the EU–North African (Mediterranean) contexts. Instead of taking a conventional comparative analysis of two distinct sites, I draw on critical scholarship in the field of border studies in order to examine biopolitical, thanatopolitical and necropolitical dynamics of bordering that cross contexts. I argue that these operations of power converge in both European and US bordering practices, specifically through a form of biophysical violence that operates directly on the biological functions of migrating bodies. I further suggest that the establishment of this violence represent

Bishawjit Mallick investigates how coastal communities in Bangladesh perceive, react and adapt to a cyclone disaster, and what role migration and non-migration play in recovering devastated livelihoods Climatologists predict an increase in the frequency and intensity of cyclone disasters in tropical regions, particularly in Bangladesh. Nevertheless, effects of weather and climate events on societies might depend not only on the type and strength of the hazards, but also on the livelihood conditions of those affected. Accordingly, this presentation considers the following research questions: (a) How do coastal communities in Bangladesh perceive, react and adapt to a cyclone disaster, and why do they act so? (b) Which role do migration and non-migration play in recovering devastated livelihoods, and which lessons can be learned here for future adaptation planning? To answer these questions, I employ a mixed method (quantitative and qualitative) approach of empirical investigation. Based on a structured questio

Antoine Pécoud (University of Paris 13) critically analyses the reports produced by international organisations on migration, shedding light on the way these actors frame migration and develop their recommendations on how it should be governed Migration has become, since the nineties, the subject of growing international discussion and cooperation. International organisations and the international community have taken a number of initiatives to better ‘manage’ migration and make it the object of ‘global governance’ mechanisms. This implies a specific intellectual and political construction of migration as a global issue that would deserve international attention. This calls for critically analysing the reports produced by international organisations on migration, and for shedding light on the way these actors frame migration and develop their recommendations on how it should be governed. In contrast to the dominant representations in many receiving countries, international migration narratives develop a posit

Paolo Cuttitta looks at how different humanitarian non-state actors (from large-scale international organisations to small local NGOs) operate in different spaces of the delocalised EU border Non-state actors have become increasingly important players within the European–North African migration and border regime. Paolo Cuttitta's research looks at how different humanitarian non-state actors (from large-scale international organisations to small local NGOs) operate in different spaces (international waters as well as North African countries of transit/origin such as Tunisia, Libya and Egypt) of the delocalised EU border. The question is whether and in how far their activities can be considered as part of the processes of denationalisation and/or depoliticisation of the border; in how far these actors are just supporting states in their delocalised migration and border policies and in how far they are pushing forward their own agendas instead. Can attempts to repoliticise the border generate processes of counte

Mouhoub el Mouhoud considers the effects of emigration on poverty and inequality by drawing on an original survey conducted in Algeria This presentation considers the effects of emigration on poverty and inequality by drawing on an original survey conducted in Algeria. It is the first household survey in Algeria that specifically addresses the issues of migration and remittances and provides the information necessary to evaluate their impacts on poverty and inequality. Furthermore, unlike many household surveys, this survey also collects information on pensions (a very important income source) received in the country of origin based on overseas work for returning migrants. It focuses on two regions (Kabylia and Tlemcen) which differ in terms of diaspora organisation, migration history and regional insertion. Semiparametric descriptive analysis is complemented by a parametric model, which allows for the estimation of counterfactual household income and the calculation of the impact of migration on the distribu

Hillel Rapoport (Paris School of Economics) looks at theories of migrants' social remittances in a historical context relating to fertility in 19th century France France experienced a demographic transition earlier than richer and more educated countries. This presentation offers a novel explanation for this puzzle that emphasises the diffusion of culture and information through internal migration. It tests how migration affected fertility by building a decennial bilateral migration matrix between French regions for 1861–1911. The identification strategy uses exogenous variation in transportation costs resulting from the construction of railways. The results suggest the convergence towards low birth rates can be explained by the diffusion of low-fertility norms by migrants, especially by migrants to and from Paris.

Presenting his PhD research, Visiting Fellow Guilherme Ortega explores migrant characteristic in Campinas metropolitan area, Brazil The overall aim of this work is to investigate the migratory processes of Campinas Metropolitan Area in Brazil and the flows and sociodemographic characteristics of migrants, in light of the different economic and political contexts through which Brazil has passed since the 1980s. The end of slavery in Brazil in 1888 enabled the creation of a rural labour market and altered the structure of mass consumption, thanks also to the rise of coffee exports. The accumulation of capital that proceeded from this export enabled investment in infrastructure and industry, particularly the textile and cotton industries. The end of slavery also marked the beginning of European immigration, by which those European migrants would later head for the city’s industries. The Brazilian metropolises emerged due to a tendency in countries such as Brazil, which have low investment in production, of conce

Joachim Jarreau investigates whether the benefits of migration actually reach the poorest households We study the impact of emigration on income distribution of Egyptian households, using longitudinal data covering 1998–2012. Controlling for selection of migrants and work participation of non-migrants, we find that remittances tend to increase income inequality at origin. However taking into account income earned abroad by migrants, adjusted for PPP differences, yields larger gains from migration and a negative impact on inequality of ‘income per natural’. We study the dependence of this effect with the saving share of migrants’ earnings. Positive selection of migrants tends to make migration inequality-increasing, while low transferability of skills in destination countries, primarily in the Gulf region, has the opposite effect. We argue that a focus on remittances is too restrictive to account for the whole benefits of migration to origin households, when transfer costs are high. We confirm this with househ

Robtel Neajai Pailey interrogates how Liberian citizenship has been constructed across time and space This presentation interrogates whether or not an ‘authentic’ Liberian citizen actually exists based on multi-sited fieldwork conducted between June 2012 and July 2013. Using actor-oriented analysis as my theoretical framework, I examine the interfaces between 202 Liberian respondents – namely, homeland Liberians in Monrovia, Liberia’s capital; Liberian diasporas in London, Washington, Freetown, and Accra; permanent and circular returnees; executive and legislative members of government, including the four sponsors of Liberia’s 2008 proposed dual citizenship bill – showing that their conceptualisations of 'Liberian citizenship' differ according to their lived experiences and social locations, and ultimately influence participation, or lack thereof, in post-war recovery. I argue that contemporary constructions of ‘Liberian citizenship’ transcend the legal definition enshrined in the country’s 1973 Aliens and Na

Jørgen Carling looks at the politics of the individual and the role of power relations in mobility and immobility This presentation is part of the 2016 IMI Hilary Term seminar series, which seeks to interrogate the relationship between migration, politics and political change. The series offers a wide range of (inter)disciplinary, methodological and theoretical approaches to the study of the processes and outcomes that link migration, emigrants and immigrants with politics and political change. The series seeks to discuss both how political actors govern migrants’ actions and movements ‘from above’, through policies and resources, and how migrants may shape politics ‘from below’, and can be grassroots ‘agents of change’. Key themes highlighted in this collection of seminars include research on diasporas, transnational engagement, im/migrant politics in origin and receiving countries and political change, and the implications of migration as manifestation of social transformation. The seminar series is organ

Laura Morales compares the political party preferences of migrants across Europe The objective of this paper is to study the party preferences of migrants in a comparative perspective. While long considered politically quiescent, recent studies show that migrants participate politically in their settlement countries. While in the US there is a long tradition of studies of ethnic minorities’ party preferences, European scholars have only recently addressed the issue using mainly case studies. Drawing on prior studies on the voting behavior of migrants and ethnic minorities, we test several hypotheses related to individual and contextual factors explaining the formation and the direction of migrants’ party preferences. Using data from individual surveys conducted in the context of the Localmultidem project (http://www.um.es/localmultidem/) to samples of migrant groups and natives in 7 European cities across 5 different countries (Budapest, London, Madrid, Barcelona, Milan, Zurich, and Geneva), our results sugg

Thomas Faist shows how the 'transnational social question' relates to political conflicts around the inequalities connected to cross-border migration in immigration and emigration contexts On a world scale, distress and social instability are reminiscent of the social inequalities that obtained in a large part of nineteenth-century Europe. At that time the 'social question' was the central subject of extremely volatile political conflicts between the ruling classes and working-class movements. Are we now on the verge of a new social conflict, this time on a cross-border scale, characterised by manifold boundaries – such as those between capital and labour, North and South, developed and underdeveloped or developing countries? Looking at cross-border migration, this lecture exemplifies crucial mechanisms resulting in the reproduction of old inequalities and the emergence of new inequalities. The lecture shows how the 'transnational social question' relates to political conflicts around the inequalities conne

Simon Turner explores state and nation building in Rwanda since its 1994 genocide Over the past sixty years, Rwanda has experienced massive population displacements due to ethnic tensions, war and genocide. These movements of populations have in turn caused radical transformations of the political landscape in the country. This presentation explores state and nation building in Rwanda since the genocide when the Tutsi diaspora returned in large numbers and created a state that was meant to be radically different to the pre-genocide state. I argue that the returning diaspora sees the country as virgin soil and that the diaspora itself has a great responsibility to develop the country and prevent it ‘sliding back’ into ‘genocide ideologies’. This creates a new political elite of returnees with a strong ideology of top-down developmentalism. Furthermore, I argue that the Rwandan state is performed – and hence made – through regulating populations according to when and where they moved across the borders.