3 APRIL 2008
http://www.un-instraw.org/en/media-center/press-releases/in-southern-africa-women-are-changing-the-face-of-migra-3.html
In Southern Africa,
Women are Changing the Face of Migration
A new study seeks to raise awareness of women’s changing roles in migration and
assess the impact of remittances sent by women migrants on the SADC region.
SADC - Southern African Development Community
[Santo Domingo, Dominican
Republic] Gender, Remittances and Development:
Preliminary Findings from Selected SADC Countries,” published by the
United Nations International Research and Training Institute for the
Advancement of Women (UN-INSTRAW) and
the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA), with support from the United
Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), highlights
the growing impact of women’s migration on households, families and communities
in selected countries of the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
The
study focuses on female migration from and between six SADC countries, namely Botswana, Lesotho,
Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland
and Zimbabwe,
principally to South Africa. Through a combination of literature review,
focus group discussions, and personal interviews, the study documents
the changing role of women within migratory flows in Southern
Africa, explores the potential impact of the increase in women who
migrate independently as heads of households as well as migrants’ access to
financial and other services.
With
over 16 million migrants, Africans account for one fifth of global
migrants. Projections indicate that by
2025, one in ten Africans will live and work outside their country of
origin. In particular, South Africa
has the largest number of foreign-born persons (excluding irregular migrants).
“In the past, women in Southern Africa were
often prohibited from migrating. Today, with an increasing number of African
women migrants, traditionally male-dominated patterns of migration are
changing. Overall, women now encompass
37.4% of regular migrants from the SADC region to South Africa,”
stated Hilary Anderson, Information Officer at UN-INSTRAW.
The UN-INSTRAW/SAIIA
study found that the informal economy
is a significant source of employment for women migrants, who are most likely
to work as vendors, street traders, or hawkers.
According to a 2006 survey that monitored over 85,000 traders passing
through 20 border posts connecting ten countries in the SADC region, 70% of all
traders at the main border post between South
Africa and Zimbabwe were women. The informal
economy generally provides low incomes, which has a negative impact on
integration in the destination country and the ability to send remittances. In
the mining sector, some women migrate with their
husbands or partners and provide services to male mine workers. In the case of Lesotho,
the increase in unemployment among Basotho men in South African mines has
forced women to migrate to the capital of Lesotho
to work in textile companies, or to migrate to South Africa.
“Women
migrants are more likely to be disadvantaged by the migration experience than
their male counterparts. While South
Africa is an increasingly popular
destination for migrants in numeric terms, it is often an intimidating and
unstable destination, where women migrants suffer violence, overt hostility and
social exclusion, as well as economic exploitation,” emphasized Elizabeth Sidiropoulos, National Director of
the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA). “These trends
have negative repercussions on salaries, working conditions, labour stability
and, consequently, on remittances,” she continued.
In the case of Southern
Africa, extremely little data are available regarding the
sending, utilization and impact of remittances, particularly by women. While we
know that women both send remittances as migrants, and receive them as heads of
households, we still don’t know what the implications of these
different roles are for women’s economic and social status. The UN-INSTRAW/SAIIA study highlights that
the total value of remittances has
quadrupled from less than US$2 billion in 1990 to US$8 billion in 2005. This could have significant implications for
the well-being and development of the households and communities that receive
remittances.
Existing
research in SADC countries, including that conducted by the Southern Africa
Migration Project (SAMP) shows that remittances are significant in enabling
households to meet basic needs and buy basic services. An overwhelming number of households (93%), purchase food and groceries
with remitted funds. “Cases of investment of remittances in productive
activities exist in Swaziland,
particularly in agriculture, and in Mozambique, in building materials.
However, there is no evidence of the emergence of new economic activity
generated by the receipt of remittances. Remittances protect human development
because they allow families to pay for education, health, electricity, water
and other services, when they are not provided by the State,” stressed Hilary
Anderson. .
In the context of Southern
Africa, formal remittance channels, including banks, the post
office and money transfer agencies, are expensive and notoriously slow in terms
of transfer times. To-date, the majority
of remittances are sent informally through migrating friends or relatives
(31.9%) and taxis drivers (21.3%). In
addition, the great majority of migrant-sending households (85%) receive
remittances as cash. “In this context, women are less likely than men to have
access to formal banking and other financial services. In Botswana
and Swaziland, for example, women
have to provide permission from their husbands or fathers before they can open
a bank account. This is a significant obstacle to women’s ability to make the
most of the income they send or receive as remittances,” stated Elizabeth Sidiropoulos.
As
the majority of migrants carry remittances themselves, the regularity and
frequency at which remittances are received is related to how often they return
home. On average, 59% of households received remittances once a month, with
those in Lesotho
(77%) being most likely to do so and those in Mozambique
(20%) being least likely to do so.
The data and information reviewed in the
UN-INSTRAW/SAIIA study point to an urgent need
for more research on the migration of women and their role in sending,
receiving and utilizing remittances. In
particular, data should be disaggregated by sex so that we have a better of
idea of how many women migrate, for what reasons (employment, family, etc.),
how they experience life away from their families and how this migration is
changing household formation and dynamics. .
In addition, the UN-INSTRAW/SAIIA study calls for increased dialogue on the policy context of migration in Southern
Africa that takes into account the extremely diverse nature of migration in
this region, which includes permanent, temporary and
contract migration, localized mobility, asylum-seekers and refugees, and
irregular migration. Migration policies
should also take into account women’s changing role in migratory flows, and
reflect the needs and priorities of women migrants in terms of mobility, access
to employment, personal security, and access to financial services.
Read the “2007 Survey on Migration, Remittances,
Gender and Development in Selected SADC countries”
Additional Information
About UN-INSTRAW
The United Nations
International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women is
devoted to applied research, training
and knowledge management in partnership with governments, the United Nations
Agencies, civil society and academia to achieve gender equality and women’s
empowerment.
About SAIIA
The South African Institute of International
Affairs is an independent non-governmental organization that aims to promote a
wider and more informed understanding of international issues among South
Africans.
Press contact:
Ms. Valeria Vilardo
Communications Associate Officer
UN-INSTRAW
vvilardo@un-instraw.org
Tel: 1 809-685-2111 ext. 227