Africa harbors 17 million international migrants; but only five million Africans live outside

Addis Ababa, September 13 2006: About 17.1 million international migrants live in Africa, but only five million Africans live outside the continent, according to a new report by the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) launched today as preliminary activities for the high level dialogue on migration and development kicked off in New York.

The report, International Migration and Development: Implications for Africa
says contemporary African immigrants with a divergent range of skills ---medicines, engineering, education, research and nursing --- are increasingly establishing themselves in North America, Europe and the Gulf states, remitting billions of dollars to their home countries.

An increasing number of skilled and professional African women are joining the migration streams previously dominated by men. “For instance,” says the report, “approximately 33.7 percent of sub-Saharan African physicians currently practicing in the United States are women.”

“The growing feminization of migration is a key pathway to reducing gender inequality, reducing poverty and enhancing women’s economic security,” it says.

International migration directly impacts level of poverty and promotes development. Citing studies, the report says that a 10 per cent increase in the share of international migrants in a country’s population could lead to a 1.9 percent decline in the number of people living in poverty.

It also says that a 10 percent increase in the share of international remittances in a country’s GDP will lead to a 1.6 percent decline in the share of people living in poverty.

The report adds that up to 40 percent of Somalis benefit from remittances and that poverty would increase by about 15 percent in Lesotho if migrant workers in South African mines were to stop sending money home.

For the full report, please click here