Migration in Africa - Who Gains and Who Lose? The Prospects and Problems of Migration in Africa: For the Migrant and the African Continent.

Abstract

This paper focused on the prospects and problems of Internal and International migration in Africa, with emphasis on the link it has with the development or the underdevelopment of the continent. Migration which involves the movement of people across the political boundaries of a town or a country has been described to be laced with some advantages and disadvantages for the migrants and the host community or country. In the course of this discuss, the pattern of internal migration in Africa were reviewed and this include rural-rural migration, rural-urban migration, urban-rural migration and urban-urban migration. Also, the patterns of international migration in Africa were reviewed and these are mainly intra-regional migration and intercontinental migration. Few data on migration in Africa were highlighted and it was found out that, out of the 258 Million international migrants worldwide, migrants from Africa among this figure amount to 36,222,000 and this represents 14.03 percent of international world migrants. The review of extant literature in the course of this discuss showed that, internal and international migration hold some prospects for the African continent and the individual migrants. Among the prospects of internal and international migration for the African continent are: reduction in unemployment, accelerating development in Africa’s rural areas, infrastructural development in African cities, reduction in gender inequality and reducing population pressure in African cities. For the individual migrants of Africa, prospects such as: better employment with improve income, poverty reduction for migrants and family members, increasing household wealth and expansion of life opportunities including the prospect of sending remittances for family members and for self-development were listed. The discussion also highlighted some problems that internal and international migration hold for the African continent and the individual migrants. Among the problems the continent of African face from migration are: brain-drain and loss of skilled professionals, dearth and slow pace development in Africa’s key sectors, disruption of family cohesion and the marriage structure of Africa, depopulation of rural areas, reduction of labour size in the agricultural sector and overcrowding of African cities. For the individual migrants, there are problems such as displacement from residential areas, exposure to crime, exploitation and living in the ill-equipped cities of Africa. This also include problems peculiar to international migrants such as employment discrimination and de-skilling, difficulty in accessing social services, government welfare programs, harassment and social discrimination that are peculiar to the international migrants.

Keywords: Migration, Problems, Prospects, Migrants, Remittances