Africa and Europe: building consensus on migration

The document argues that while Africa views migration as a demographic and development issue, the European Union has increasingly adopted a securitised approach. It identifies four key entry points for strengthening the Africa-EU partnership: remittances, legal labour migration pathways, international protection, and voluntary returns and readmissions.

• African and European priorities regarding migration differ significantly: Africa views migration primarily as a "demographic and development issue," whereas the European Union's approach has become increasingly "technical, security-centred" and "politicised."
• Contrary to common perceptions, the majority of African migrants move within the continent (80% in 2020), and African migrants represented only 12.9% of the total international migrants in Europe as of 2020.
• Remittances are a critical source of external financing for Africa, totaling approximately US$82.9 billion in 2020, which is more than double the total foreign direct investment (FDI) of US$39.8 billion received by the continent in the same year.
• Sub-Saharan Africa is the most expensive region globally for sending remittances, with an average commission of 8.2%, far exceeding the Sustainable Development Goal 10 target of reducing costs to below 3%.
• The EU's securitised approach to migration, including the use of development cooperation funding for migration controls via the Emergency Trust Fund for Africa (EUTF), has led to unintended consequences such as increased smuggling and instability in the central Sahel, specifically in Mali and Niger.
• Efforts to establish formal return and readmission agreements between the EU and African countries have largely failed, with Cabo Verde being the only exception; some nations like Ethiopia, Guinea, The Gambia, and Côte d’Ivoire have instead used informal agreements.
• Legal labour migration pathways are preferred by both continents, with initiatives like the Global Skill Partnership and EU pilot projects involving Morocco, Nigeria, Egypt, and Tunisia aiming to align migration with labour market needs.

APA

Maunganidze, O. A. (2021). Africa and Europe: building consensus on migration. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/PB-166.pdf

Chicago

Maunganidze, Ottilia Anna. Africa and Europe: building consensus on migration. Institute for Security Studies, 2021. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/PB-166.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Maunganidze |first1=Ottilia Anna |title=Africa and Europe: building consensus on migration |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=2021 |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/PB-166.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{maunganidze2021africa, author = {Maunganidze, Ottilia Anna}, title = {{Africa and Europe: building consensus on migration}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2021}, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/PB-166.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }