Migration and development Migration and development are closely connected, but the relations are many and sometimes contradictory. The popular assumption is often that underdevelopment is an impetus to migration, while development will slow it down. Research shows that it is not quite so simple. Migration is a complex phenomenon that has the potential to further development and reduce poverty but also to increase social and political differences. International organizations, banks, and migrants’ sending countries have opened their eyes for the migrants’ economic transfers – the so-called remittances, which is estimated to constitute more than 414 billion US dollars (2009): Almost three times more than the global official development assistance (ODA). Whereas previous research has paid much attention to the question of brain drain, current research is supplemented with a focus on circular and skilled migration as well as on migrants’ contributions to their countries of origin. However, migration and development is not just about financial flows. Mobility and transnationalism give raise to a range of social and political changes, for instance in relation to organization, norms, and ideas of democracy and rights – often termed social and political remittances. Likewise, the focus on migration as a development resource brings to the fore dilemmas concerning inequality in the countries of origin caused by access or lack of access to mobility. We explore these overall questions through a range of sub-themes:
Researchers working on these themes include: Nauja Kleist, Peter Hansen, Birgitte Mossin Brønden and Ninna Nyberg Sørensen Relevant publicationsAfrican Diaspora Organizations and Homeland Development: Somali and Ghanaian associations in Denmark Nauja Kleist, 2009 Agents of Development and Change. The Somali Diaspora at Work Nauja Kleist, 2008 Mobilizing ‘the Diaspora’. Somali Transnational Political Engagement Nauja Kleist, 2008 In the Name of Diaspora: Between Struggles for Recognition and Political Aspirations Nauja Kleist, 2008 Diaspora – Studying the mobilization of a Somaliland transborder citizenry Nauja Kleist og Peter Hansen, 2008 Migrant remittances, development and gender (pdf) Ninna Nyberg Sørensen, 2007 Remitter – finansiering af udvikling i Afrika? Peter Hansen og Trine Rask Thygesen, DIIS Working Paper 2007:6, marts 2007 Living across worlds : diaspora, development and transnational engagement (pdf, 2,1 MB) Ninna Nyberg Sørensen (red.), 2007 The development dimension of migrant transfers (pdf) Ninna Nyberg Sørensen, 2004 Opportunities and pitfalls in the migration-development nexus (pdf) Ninna Nyberg Sørensen, 2004 Migrant transfers as a development tool: The case of Morocco (pdf) Ninna Nyberg Sørensen, 2004 Migrant Transfers as a Development Tool. The Case of Somaliland (pdf) Peter Hansen, 2004 The Big Demonstration. A study of transborder political mobilization. Nauja Kleist og Peter Hansen, 2005 Research programmeMigration and development is a theme in several research projects including the research programme Mobilising African Diasporas as Agents of Change: a comparative study of the encounter between African states and their diasporas. |
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