Can information and alternatives to irregular migration reduce “backway” migration from The Gambia?

Tijan Bah, Catia Batista, Flore Gubert and David McKenzie
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Tijan Bah: Banque Mondiale

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Abstract: Irregular migration from West Africa to Europe across the Sahara and Mediterranean is extremely risky for migrants and a key policy concern. A cluster-randomized experiment with 3641 young men from 391 settlements in The Gambia is used to test three approaches to reducing risky migration: providing better information and testimonials about the risks of the journey, facilitating migration to a safer destination by providing information and assistance for migration to Dakar, and offering vocational skill training to enhance domestic employment opportunities. Current migration to Senegal was increased by both the Dakar facilitation and vocational training treatments, partially crowding out internal migration. The vocational training treatment reduced intentions to migrate the backway and the number of steps taken toward moving. However, the backway migration rate from The Gambia collapsed, even in the control group, resulting in no space for a treatment effect on irregular migration from any of the three interventions.

Keywords: Irregular migration; Migration deterrence; Information interventions; Vocational training; Cash transfer; Randomized experiment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal.science/hal-04318087v1
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

Published in Journal of Development Economics, 2023, 165, pp.103153. ⟨10.1016/j.jdeveco.2023.103153⟩

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Related works:
Journal Article: Can information and alternatives to irregular migration reduce “backway” migration from The Gambia? (2023)
Working Paper: Can Information and Alternatives to Irregular Migration Reduce "Backway" Migration from The Gambia? (2023)
Working Paper: Can information and alternatives to irregular migration reduce backway migration from the Gambia? (2022)
Working Paper: Can Information and Alternatives to Irregular Migration Reduce “Backway” Migration from The Gambia ? (2022)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-04318087

DOI: 10.1016/j.jdeveco.2023.103153

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