Migration and Sustainable Development goals

Description:

The adoption of sustainable development goals in 2015, with its reference to migration as contributing factor in development, has revived academic and policy debates about the developmental potential of migration.

Although a lot is being said and argued about the contribution of migration to development, to date there is no consensus in the literature regarding this discussion.  The debate on whether migration and diaspora communities contribute to development remains “unsettled” (Papademetriou. D., and P. Martin (Eds) 1991 The Unsettled Relationship: Labor Migration and Economic Development, Greenwood Press, Westport, Connecticut).  In the literature on migration and development nexus, one can still find both optimists and pessimists. 

This course intends to introduce the students to the theories associated with optimistic and pessimistic views of the developmental potential of migration and diaspora communities. Global governance, policies and action plans to leverage migration for the attainment of sustainable development goals will not be effective if they are not accompanied by a deeper understanding of the theories behind migration optimism and pessimism.  This is because their effectiveness is dependent on the extent to which policy makers and practitioners understand migration in its broader social context and against the background of complex social processes at the country of origin and destination. 

Learning outcomes:

On successful completion of this course students will be able to

• Analyze the theories of migration and theories of development that are associated with pessimistic and optimistic views of developmental potential of migration.
• Assess the similarities and differences between functionalist paradigm and historical-structuralist paradigm for understanding migration and development nexus.
• Offer a critical appraisal of diaspora as transnational communities, how their spatial and temporal identities are shaped by responses to globalization and their role in development.
• Offer a critical appraisal of migrant remittances as instrument for development.

INdex:

1. Background information
2. Optimistic view - modernization theory / neo-classical theory
3. Pessimistic view - cumulative causationtheory / dependency theory
4. Optimistic view - new economics of labour migration / livelihoods theory
5. Diaspora communities as agent of development
6. Remittance as contributor of development