Summary from the required literature by Mel:
Migration and Global Developent. Utrecht University (2024) Niveau 3 / Bachelor gevorderd
Introduction and Key Themes in Migration and Development (Bastia, Skeldon, 2020)
Migration and development nexus:
- Migration is both a cause and a consequence of development, creating dynamic and context-
specific interactions
UN: Migration is defined by the UN as long-term (12 months or more) relocation to a new county
IOM: expands this definition to include all types of movement, regardless of legality, voluntariness.
Development: Defined as a multidimensional process improving quality of life through economic,
social and environmental initiatives. It includes efforts like the SDGs.
Forced displacement: examining resettlement processes and their socio-spatial impacts
Labour mobility: investigating cross-border employment and its role in economic growth and
inequality.
Transnational families & care: exploring how migration impacts family dynamics.
Complex dynamics: Migrants act as agent of development through remittances, skills transfer and
diaspora initiatives, but face challenges such as brain drain and exploitation.
Critical Perspectives on the Migration-Development Nexus (Raghuram, 2009)
Migration and development are framed in oversimplified ways, often emphasizing economic
remittances, while neglecting broader-political dynamics and inequalities.
Keyconcepts:
Visible v.s. invisible migration: Official narratives highlight economic contribution (remittances,
diaspora programs) while marginalizing forms like undocumented migration or migration by
development professionals.
Power and spatial politics: Migration and development often reinforce state-centric and Eurocentric
power structures, framing the global South as dependent on Northern interventions.
Temporal and spatial biases: Discussions on migration development often ignore historical and
cultural dimensions, focusing narrowly on modern economic paradigm.
1. Analyse how migration contributes to development in both origin and destination countries.
Discuss limitations of the current migration-development nexus framework:
-Migration contributes to development through financial remittances, skill transfers. However the
migration development nexus often overlooks inequalities, marginalizes undocumented migrants
and reinforces Eurocentric paradigms, emphasizing economic metrics over social and political
impacts.
2. Explain the concepts visible and invisible migration. How does this dichotomy shape migration
policies and development discourse?
Visible migration includes forms like remittances and diaspora-led development, which align with
state-driven economic goals. Invisible migration, like undocumented workers or mobile development
professional is often excluded from policy frameworks. This dichotomy limits holistic policy
, development and perpetuates structural inequities by privileging measurable economic outputs over
less tangible social and cultural contributions.
3. Discuss how spatial and temporal biases influence the framing of migration and development.
Spatial biases frame the Global South as recipients of development aid and migrants as agents of
redistribution. Temporal biases emphasize modern economic paradigm, ignoring historical context,
like colonial resource extraction. Remittances are celebrated in development discourses, but their
role in perpetuating dependence is rarely critiqued. The historical subalternization of non-Western
medical practices during colonialism shapes current brain drains narratives.
4. Evaluate the role of brain drain in the migration development nexus, what are the potential
benefits and challenges of this phenomenon?
Brain drain refers to the emigration of skilled professionals from low-middle income countries to
wealthier regions, leading to talent loss in origin countries. The phenomenon often exacerbates
inequalities, deprives countries of critical expertise and reinforces dependency.
5. How do transnational families navigate care responsibilities, and what are the implications for
global development?
Transnational families manage care through remittances, digital communication etc. For global
development this highlights the uneven burdens of caregiving and the global commodification of
care, underscoring the need for policies supporting care networks in both origin and destination
countries.
Aspirations and Capabilities in Migration (De Haas, 2021)
Framework: Aspirations-capabilities-framework: migration is a combination of people’s aspirations
(desire to move) and capabilities (resources and opportunities enabling migration).
Focus: migration is not just a result of push-pull factors, but depends on socio-economic and political
structures that shape aspirations and capabilities.
Agency: Stresses individual agency where migration is a choice, influenced by broader social
changes, rather than a reactive response to external factors.
Paradoxes: Economic development often decreases migration, contrary to simplistic assumptions
that development reduces emigration.
Theoretical approach: applies sen’s concept of capabilities to migration, emphasizing the ability to
choose where to live, including the option to stay.
Migration is not limited to the poorest populations; it frequently involves middle-income individuals
and societies undergoing transformations.
Revisiting Migration Theory (Carling & Schewel, 2018)
Immobility highlights involuntary immobility (situations where people aspire to migrate, but lack the
means).
Aspiration vs Ability, this differentiates between wanting to migrate and being able to, to understand
why some do not migrate despite global inequalities.
Dynamics: Emphasizes the complexity and interplay of individual decisions and structural factors.
Migration must be seen as the result of an interplay between aspiration and ability, rather than a
linear response to external drivers. Helps to explain why global inequalities do not automatically lead
Migration and Global Developent. Utrecht University (2024) Niveau 3 / Bachelor gevorderd
Introduction and Key Themes in Migration and Development (Bastia, Skeldon, 2020)
Migration and development nexus:
- Migration is both a cause and a consequence of development, creating dynamic and context-
specific interactions
UN: Migration is defined by the UN as long-term (12 months or more) relocation to a new county
IOM: expands this definition to include all types of movement, regardless of legality, voluntariness.
Development: Defined as a multidimensional process improving quality of life through economic,
social and environmental initiatives. It includes efforts like the SDGs.
Forced displacement: examining resettlement processes and their socio-spatial impacts
Labour mobility: investigating cross-border employment and its role in economic growth and
inequality.
Transnational families & care: exploring how migration impacts family dynamics.
Complex dynamics: Migrants act as agent of development through remittances, skills transfer and
diaspora initiatives, but face challenges such as brain drain and exploitation.
Critical Perspectives on the Migration-Development Nexus (Raghuram, 2009)
Migration and development are framed in oversimplified ways, often emphasizing economic
remittances, while neglecting broader-political dynamics and inequalities.
Keyconcepts:
Visible v.s. invisible migration: Official narratives highlight economic contribution (remittances,
diaspora programs) while marginalizing forms like undocumented migration or migration by
development professionals.
Power and spatial politics: Migration and development often reinforce state-centric and Eurocentric
power structures, framing the global South as dependent on Northern interventions.
Temporal and spatial biases: Discussions on migration development often ignore historical and
cultural dimensions, focusing narrowly on modern economic paradigm.
1. Analyse how migration contributes to development in both origin and destination countries.
Discuss limitations of the current migration-development nexus framework:
-Migration contributes to development through financial remittances, skill transfers. However the
migration development nexus often overlooks inequalities, marginalizes undocumented migrants
and reinforces Eurocentric paradigms, emphasizing economic metrics over social and political
impacts.
2. Explain the concepts visible and invisible migration. How does this dichotomy shape migration
policies and development discourse?
Visible migration includes forms like remittances and diaspora-led development, which align with
state-driven economic goals. Invisible migration, like undocumented workers or mobile development
professional is often excluded from policy frameworks. This dichotomy limits holistic policy
, development and perpetuates structural inequities by privileging measurable economic outputs over
less tangible social and cultural contributions.
3. Discuss how spatial and temporal biases influence the framing of migration and development.
Spatial biases frame the Global South as recipients of development aid and migrants as agents of
redistribution. Temporal biases emphasize modern economic paradigm, ignoring historical context,
like colonial resource extraction. Remittances are celebrated in development discourses, but their
role in perpetuating dependence is rarely critiqued. The historical subalternization of non-Western
medical practices during colonialism shapes current brain drains narratives.
4. Evaluate the role of brain drain in the migration development nexus, what are the potential
benefits and challenges of this phenomenon?
Brain drain refers to the emigration of skilled professionals from low-middle income countries to
wealthier regions, leading to talent loss in origin countries. The phenomenon often exacerbates
inequalities, deprives countries of critical expertise and reinforces dependency.
5. How do transnational families navigate care responsibilities, and what are the implications for
global development?
Transnational families manage care through remittances, digital communication etc. For global
development this highlights the uneven burdens of caregiving and the global commodification of
care, underscoring the need for policies supporting care networks in both origin and destination
countries.
Aspirations and Capabilities in Migration (De Haas, 2021)
Framework: Aspirations-capabilities-framework: migration is a combination of people’s aspirations
(desire to move) and capabilities (resources and opportunities enabling migration).
Focus: migration is not just a result of push-pull factors, but depends on socio-economic and political
structures that shape aspirations and capabilities.
Agency: Stresses individual agency where migration is a choice, influenced by broader social
changes, rather than a reactive response to external factors.
Paradoxes: Economic development often decreases migration, contrary to simplistic assumptions
that development reduces emigration.
Theoretical approach: applies sen’s concept of capabilities to migration, emphasizing the ability to
choose where to live, including the option to stay.
Migration is not limited to the poorest populations; it frequently involves middle-income individuals
and societies undergoing transformations.
Revisiting Migration Theory (Carling & Schewel, 2018)
Immobility highlights involuntary immobility (situations where people aspire to migrate, but lack the
means).
Aspiration vs Ability, this differentiates between wanting to migrate and being able to, to understand
why some do not migrate despite global inequalities.
Dynamics: Emphasizes the complexity and interplay of individual decisions and structural factors.
Migration must be seen as the result of an interplay between aspiration and ability, rather than a
linear response to external drivers. Helps to explain why global inequalities do not automatically lead
