As Borders are Reopening, what does it mean for Migrants?
Border closures, physical distancing, lockdowns, and subsequent restricted onward mobility of the COVID-19 pandemic has been heavily impacting the lives and wellbeing of migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. The restrictions have not only stopped the movement of people and goods, but also domestic and international remittances (1). Diaspora communities in the Global North, in addition to South Africa, Kenya, and Uganda are experiencing job losses, and the remittances that sustain 40% of Somalis are rapidly diminishing (1). Despite,...
Documentation, Documentation, Documentation!
When we consider people on the move and their interaction with government authorities or access to services one of the matters that is often raised is identification and/or enabling documentation and the absence thereof presents with a number of challenges. We regularly hear about documentation allowing for migration via regular channels or that a migrant migrated via irregular channels because they did not have the requisite documentation. The absence of documentation for migrants creates another layer of vulnerability...
Media and Migration: 2020 World Press Photo Contest Winners
The 16th of April 2020 World Press Photo announced the winners of the 63rd annual edition photo competition. The World Press Photo is the largest and most prestigious competition that honors photojournalism. In recent years, the European migration crisis has been the focus of many winning images. Like past years, the trend of migration in this year’s nominations continued. Different to years prior, this year also highlighted protests that took place in Africa. The winning photograph, Straight...
An Inside Look at the Palabek Refugee Settlement
Palabek Refugee Settlement, located in northern Uganda, is home to approximately 36,000 South Sudanese refugees. South Sudan was plagued by civil war in 2013 and conflict still remains in the region. In February of 2019, Father Filippo Ferraro, Executive Director of SIHMA, had the opportunity to visit the settlement and conduct two interviews in order to gain a greater perspective of the reality of these refugees’ ongoing situation. The first interview...
Women are migrating to follow their aspirations
As of 2017, the total number of international migrants is estimated at around 258 million of which 48 percent are women. The term feminization of migration indicates an increase in the percentage of female migrants and refers to women who migrate independently. Scholars debate whether the feminization of migration is a new phenomenon or not. Some argue that women have always migrated but their movements were of less interest to academics. Between 1960 and 2015, the female share...
Migration-Security Nexus vs Migration-Development nexus. Is decolonization of migration a third way?
The shift towards the securitization of migration is complete and this is not a news. However, so far, the debate around security and migration has involved countries in the Global North, while on the African continent discussions have privileged the migration for development paradigm and its agenda. Nonetheless, the security paradigm is gaining consensus amongst African states, some of which receive financial aid from the European Union to stop irregular migration. Countries such as Niger, Ethiopia and Sudan have put in place interventions aiming...
