South-South migration and Human Development A critical review

1. South-South migration and Human DevelopmentA critical review Oliver Bakewell www.imi.ox.ac.uk

2. 2 Broad overview of migration patterns Distinctive aspects of migration between developing countries History Drivers of migration Role of the state Impacts on human development The problematic South (and North) Conclusion Outline

3. Low capacity for data collection � staff, training, resources Poor quality of data collected Long land borders with few formal crossing points Borders cutting across kinship and language groups Informal notions of nationality Limited migration data

4. Origin and destination of migrants by HDI

5. Migration to very high HDI countries < migration between countries with lower HDI Highest levels of emigration in countries with high HDI Migration most concentrated in very high HDI countries Proximity counts General observations

6. Migrants as % of population

7. % migrants by origin continent

8. Livelihoods and trade Expansion for new resources Trading routes leading to permanent migration Colonialism Often drew on existing practices Control of mobility central to colonial success Forced labour, hut taxes, seizure of land Wage labour in mines, plantations etc. Concern about urbanisation History

9. Post-colonial refugee movements Prolonged wars of liberation and civil wars Large numbers of refugees held in camps for many years Creating new permanent migrant populations � despite state policies History

10. Livelihoods Migration as an intrinsic part of livelihood strategies Job opportunities � e.g. in oil, mining, manufacturing, services Political conditions Political crises and conflicts Majority of refugees in poorest regions � 80% in Asia and Africa Changes in government � e.g. South Africa Drivers of migration

11. Social factors Moving for school - internal and regional migration in East Africa China and Thailand attracting students from region Marriage � always associated with migration Migration as route to adulthood

12. Impacts of climate change ? predictions of massive displacement among the poor Very little evidence to support these claims Complex and little understood linkages between environmental change and migration Environment may influence migration decision but not only sole cause Environmental factors

13. Role of state Very poor success rates of attempts to influence migration behaviour Policy is underdeveloped in poor regions Sharp divide between policy concerns of �sending� and �receiving� countries

14. Borders Assumed to mean little to people Borders imposed by colonialists � limited legitimacy Easily crossed with no formalities Regional and internal migration treated the same Crossing borders changes rights and identities Marking out different institutional regimes � tax, services etc. Boundaries of power � possibility of refuge

15. Emigration and diaspora policies Focus on migrants moving to very high HDI countries Concern about welfare of citizens abroad Diasporas and development industry � �potentially exploitable, if underdeveloped resource�! Very rare to hear of African diasporas in other parts of Africa

16. Immigration policies

17. Integration in Africa Relations between citizens rather than arrival of immigrants Multiple language groups within borders Post-colonial state building Literature on integration in Africa Integration of refugees (Re)integration of return migrants Social integration seen as unproblematic Policy vacuum within Africa

18. Impacts on human development Migration between lower HDI countries likely to have similar impacts to other migration Possibly Lower income gains but spread more widely Possibly greater impact on poorer communities Migrants in weaker position � fewer rights, vulnerable to exploitation � does this contribute to human development? Remittances � used to relieve poverty rather than investment � is this human development?

19. Impacts on human development Human capital formation Social and cultural change � migrants contributing to new practices � consumption, culture, food etc. Transnational engagement � examples of longstanding transnational communities, Lebanese in W. Africa, new support groups Protracted displacement

20. The problematic South (and North) What do we mean by South-South migration? Commonly used term but no formal definition � effectively synonym for developing countries Partition of world North/South � but based on different categories UN developing regions, World Bank income, UNDP HDI

21. The problematic South (and North)

22. The problematic South (and North)

23. The problematic South (and North)

24. The problematic South (and North)

25. The problematic South (and North)

26. Why South-South migration? Migration systems are interlinked � how to we recognise South-South migration? South/North categories based on convention not analysis Why should we assume commonalities in social process by virtue of being in South? Why assume social processes different in South and North? Danger of creating false distinction South-North border is moving � difficult to compare over time

27. Conclusion Difficult to identify distinctive features of �South-South� migration New focus on understanding migration in poorer regions is important Framing this in terms of �South-South� migration adds little Attempting to do so may reproduce North/South relations Better disaggregate migration by geography and levels of development Also important not to ignore commonalities of migration experiences across world