The Nordic Africa Institute

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African mobilities and migration

Links to information resources. Mobility and migration is an important theme to understand challenges and possibilities on the continent. This resource was first compiled by the library staff for the Nordic Africa Days 2018 and more extensively updated in 2023.

Introduction

African migration has been at the top of Nordic foreign policy agendas for the past decade. The two central concerns of these agendas have been the irregular arrival of African migrants in Europe and accompanying concern about the safety of migrants, who are risking their lives; for example when attempting to cross the Mediterranean Sea. But African migration is about much more than the relatively small numbers of migrants who arrive in Europe without the proper papers.

A wider view and deeper knowledge of African migration has the potential to enrich other policy agendas – on poverty reduction, sustainable cities, higher education, gender inequality and climate change adaptation. Even for actors whose sole focus is on irregular migration to Europe, a more realistic and research-informed understanding of the underlying dynamics of African migration is essential for designing more efficient and humane policies.

From NAI Policy Note 2023:1, Aligning European migration policies with African priorities: policy advice on African migration for Nordic decision makers by Jesper Bjarnesen (PDF version External link, opens in new window., Web version).


Selected publications


NAI library resources

Links will bring you to our search tool AfricaLit Plus, where you can further tweak and filter your search.

Print titles are usually available for interlibrary loan within the Nordics, and quite a few titles are freely available online (try the open access filter).

Search the NAI library local collection for:

You may also want to search using these keywords:

Asylum External link, opens in new window., Brain drain External link, opens in new window., Citizenship External link, opens in new window., Diaspora External link, opens in new window., Displaced persons External link, opens in new window., Emigrants External link, opens in new window., Exiles External link, opens in new window., Foreign workers External link, opens in new window., Human trafficking External link, opens in new window., Immigrants External link, opens in new window., Labour migration External link, opens in new window., Labour mobility External link, opens in new window., Migrant assimilation External link, opens in new window., Migrant workers External link, opens in new window., Refugee camps External link, opens in new window., Remittances External link, opens in new window., Resettlement External link, opens in new window., Return migration External link, opens in new window., Xenophobia External link, opens in new window.

Will include journal articles etc. that are not accessible outside of NAI premises. You may have access through your organization or educational institution if they have a subscription.

Other online resources

The African Centre for Migration & Society

"[S]cholarly institution for research and teaching on human mobility dedicated to shaping global discourse on human mobility and social transformation."

EASO COI Portal

European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) cooperates with the national asylum authorities of EU+ states on this Country of Origin Information (COI) portal, which is partly open to the public.

Ecoi.net

The country of origin information system of the Austrian Red Cross (ACCORD), gathers, structures and processes publicly available country of origin information.

IREON-Portal

Service from The German Information Network for International Relations and Area Studies.

KNOMAD, the Global Knowledge Partnership on Migration and Development

Multidisciplinary knowledge partnership which draws on experts to create and synthesize knowledge for use by policy makers in sending, receiving and transit countries. Cooperates with the Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD) and the U.N. agencies working on migration

The New Humanitarian

The New Humanitarian (formerly IRIN News) was founded by the United Nations in 1995. News and analysis from crises and hotspots all around the world. Special sections for Africa-related and migration-related topics.

Mixed Migration Centre

Global network engaged in data collection, research, analysis, and policy and programmatic development on mixed migration, with regional hubs hosted in Danish Refugee Council (DRC). Region sections with data, quarterly migration updates, publications etc.

RefWorld

UNHCR's information system where they gather and structure country of origin information from different, reliable sources.

 

More on this website:

This resource was first compiled by the NAI library staff in connection to the Nordic Africa Days 2018 with the theme African Mobilities – Reshaping narratives and practices of circulation and exchange and updated 2019 and 2023.

Introduction (2018)

The introduction to the 2018 page version was a selection from the call for papers to the conference:

Mobilities have always been central to economic, social, cultural, and political formations across the African continent. In light of rising concerns over mass displacement and irregular migration towards the global North, the movement of people tends to be seen in an intellectually limiting and politically hostile manner.

The unequal distribution of social mobility continues to raise concerns relating to economic and political prospects for African polities. These different mobilities, moreover, combine and overlap in significant ways that are often neglected in public debates and policy initiatives.

By highlighting the multiplicity of mobilities that characterise contemporary Africa and the wider world today, as well as the social, cultural, economic and political anchorage of these movements in localised understandings and agendas, the theme African Mobilities encourages a holistic understanding of human movements as embedded in wider webs of circulation and exchange.

Selected publications (2018-2019)

Africa Portal publications on migration External link, opens in new window. (all years). Africa portal is a research repository and an expert analysis hub on African affairs — a cooperation between South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) and the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI).

KNOMAD publications on migration External link, opens in new window. (the Global Knowledge Partnership on Migration and Development)

Migration Policy Frameworks in Africa External link, opens in new window. / Tsion Tadesse Abebe, 2017

Rural Africa in motion / Dynamics and drivers of migration South of the Sahara External link, opens in new window. [pdf] / by Sara Mercandalli et al, 2017

World migration report 2020 External link, opens in new window. / International Organization for Migration

NAI library collection

Clicking on the links will bring you to our search tool AfricaLit Plus, where you can narrow down or expand your query. Print titles are usually available for loan within the Nordics, and quite a few titles are freely available online.

A broad, general search on mobility/migration/refugees:

Find titles on these themes from a 'mobilities viewpoint':