By Angela Haynes
About 50% of people who migrate are women, and despite
discussion of the ‘feminisation of migration’ this figure has changed little
since 1960. However, we still know very little about the women who
migrate and the effects of their migration, especially within and between
developing countries. We know that often they migrate to engage in low paid
roles such as domestic or health care workers, however they also migrate in
order to marry, or to be reunited with a spouse who migrated earlier, in
addition to migrating due to emergency situations and disasters.
We need to know more about the factors which cause them to
migrate, the drivers at individual and macro societal levels. Although we know
that women who migrate as workers often send regular cash remittances earned
abroad to families in their countries of origin on a regular basis, we need to
know more about whether such remittances are used for different purposes to
those sent by male migrants. While discussions focused on women and migration
have often stressed the vulnerability of women to exploitation, discrimination
and abuse, some findings have indicated that the process of migration can also
support women's empowerment, whether it is the woman who has
migrated or not.
Awareness of the different impact of migration drivers,
impact and policy on men and women permeates the work of the Migrating out of
Poverty Research Programme Consortium. As the consortium, currently in its
inception phase, progresses we will be addressing some of these issues in depth
and identifying policy approaches to improve prospects for women migrants,
their families and communities.
Angela Haynes is the Research Uptake Manager of the Migrating Out of Poverty Research Programme
Consortium at the University of Sussex
