International migration and the conduit pipe syndrome

• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/pa.1610
• Date: 01 August 2017
• Author: Matthew Olatubosun Aihonsu
• Published date: 01 August 2017

■Practitioner Paper

International migration and the conduit

pipe syndrome

Matthew Olatubosun Aihonsu*

National Open University of Nigeria/School of Arts and Social Sciences/Lagos Study Centre, Lagos, Nigeria

Migration is as old as mankind. So are the fears and hopes attached to it by the different parties directly or indirectly

concerned. Wars, poverty and humanitarian crises have been one steady producer of –mostly involuntary –migra-

tion. The pursuit of economic advantage has been another major driver of migration, by those who left their home

in the hope of a better life elsewhere. Sometimes, immigrants met with a hearty welcome in the destination country,

especially if they brought with them skills needed but in short supply in the destination country.Mostly, however, the

reaction of those at the receiving end was at best mixed, and often outright hostile. Experts agree that the surprising

thing about migration is not how often it occurs, but how rare it is. Up to now, human beings have shown a strong

resistance to move away from their home ground. As long as conditions at home do not become absolutely unbear-

able, or the expected benef‌its of moving elsewhere are not extremely high, the human race seems to prefer to ‘stay

put’. However, it must also be stressed that the movement pattern and distribution of millions of migrants are not

evenly spread across the globe. European countries are amongst those with the highest share of foreign nationals.

It is therefore perhaps better understandable that there is a major public debate about the pros and cons of migration

in Europe. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

INTRODUCTION

The term ‘migration’might appear clear-cut and un-

ambiguous, but it is not. For most people, it carries

the connotation of a physical move, often, but not

necessarily, between countries, for more or less per-

manent settlement, or, at any rate, a long-term stay.

In practice, the reality behind the term refers to a

wide range of forms and types of movement or

mobility. Moreover, as will become obvious below,

the different types and forms of migration tend to

overlap and blend into each other.

1

The literature on migration classif‌ies the phenome-

non into different types,some of which are opposition

pairs. First, there is the differentiation into ‘forced’

and ‘voluntary migration’. Refugees, seeking asylum

or at least temporary shelter in another country as a

consequence of armed conf‌licts, persecution or seri-

ous discrimination in their country of origin, are a

typical case of ‘forced migrants’.‘Labour market mi-

gration’, i.e. mobility for the purpose of employment,

is one frequent form of voluntary migration. Second,

there is thedistinction between ‘permanent’and ‘tem-

porary’migration. A foreignstudent would be a clas-

sical case ofa temporary migrant, whereas a husband

joining hiswife (or vice versa) is expected to stay in the

destination country and therefore thought to be per-

manent. Thereare, however, groups(growing in size)

who do not clearly fall into either category: cross

border commuters, for example, who continue to

(formally) reside in their home country, but work in

another. Seasonal workers are hard to classify, too.

This is why some researchers have suggested the

introduction of an intermediate category, that of

‘incomplete migration’. Third, there is the categoriza-

tion into ‘legal’and ‘illegal immigration’.

Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 1of 9

*Correspondence to: Matthew Olatubosun Aihonsu, National

Open University of Nigeria/School of Arts and Social Sciences/

Lagos Study Centre, Home Address: 5, Shonola Street, Aguda,

Ogba, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria.

E-mail: aolatubosun@ymail.com

1

See generally John Salt, Current Trends in International Migration

in Europe, Council of Europe (CDMG (2001) 33), Luxembourg

2001, pp. 4 sqq.

Journal of Public Affairs

Volume 17 Number 3 e1610 (2017)

Published online 31 March 2016 in Wiley Online Library

(www.wileyonlinelibrary.com) DOI: 10.1002/pa.1610