In: Economics
ANSWER
BEING FOR OPEN BORDERS
INTRODUCTION
People have moved from place to place since tye begining of human
history, whether in search of new land and apsture,or for trade and
conquest .The increase incross border flows of trade and finace due
to the growing integration of national economies into a world
marketso called globalisation plus the developments in transport
,media and communication technologies ,have made these
opportunbnities nad territoris now appear closer than ever.
Migration often involves the crossing of borders separating one
country from another and it therefore affects particularly every
state in world,either as acountry of origin ,as a palce of
destination or both .This has madce migration a major political
issue . Migrants are increasingly confronted with restrictive
measures and xenophobic public attitudes ,exacerbated by the
securitisation .
REASON FOR MIGRATION
Economically driven explanations regard migration as a consequence
of an uneven geograpphical distribution of labour and capital .This
motivates workers to go from countries or regions where labour is
abundant and wages low to , labour scarce countries where wages are
high . The result is a redistribution of labour and the eventual
equalisation of wages between coutries incducing migratory flows to
stop.
The decison to migrate is therefore made rationally , voluntary and
by choice either by individuals or as household .But although
differences in economic opprtunities are important reasons for
migrations.
Another way to explain migration is by including a socio -political
perspective .Marxist dependency and world system theories connect
labour migration to capitalism and imperialism whereby migration is
regarded as inevitable in societies transition to capitalism with
labour being instrumental in capitalist production and capital
accumulation migration is seen as away of core countries dominating
peripheral areas ,.This domination first occured because of
colonistaion and now it is ahped by the power of transational
corporations and foreign direct investment .Migration therefore
leads to more inequality instead of convergence between cpuntries
.The deicision to migrate is not about choice ,it is a strategy for
survial.
MIGRATION AND DEVELOPMENT
The way that migratrion links into development strategies is
through remittances , the money migrants send beck home .For
deveeloping countries ,remittance are a crucial sourece of national
income and foreign exchange Whats more , it is a reliable source of
income than other more volatile capital flows such as foreign
direct investement. Exporting workers in exchange for remittances
are therefore an important means for developing countries
goverenments tt cope with unemployment and foreign debt . in the
Phillipines , as in China and Bangladesh, where emigration is
actively promoted , remittances represent about a third of foreign
exchange.
But not only unskilled workers emigrate .Miliions of highly
educated and skilled people move from countries where human capital
is relatively scarce .the World Bank estimates that more than 15 %
of Africa s skilled workers with atertiary educatiion move abroad ,
a number higher than any region in the world . The UN considers
this Brain Drain one of the greatest obstacles to Africas
development.
Migration to contribution to development and poverty reduction in
developing countries is predominantly linked to remittances , but
althoughthese money flows have improved the living conditions of
millions of households and have become acrucial source of a
national income and foreign exchange , the trade offs related to
the export of human capital need not be taken for grnted .
Migration can equally impede development as is refelcted in the
brain drain and the exarcerbated circumstances they create for
thodsse left behiind . Adiditionally , the role migration is said
to play in social development remains heavily dependent on the
prevalent process of inclusion and exclusion , social changes
happen slowly .
What would be of great benefit to the development of migranrt -
sending countriesw is if migrant workers could return to their home
quantities not only with finacial remittances but with enhance
dskills . But this tendency is strngly reduced the tighter the
control on migration . Strict immigration policies fuelo the
impulse to stay and settle in countries the country of destination
in order to secure continue access to work . This brings to the
impact the response of governement policies and social attitudes
have on migration.
MAIN CONCERNS FOR GOVERNMENTS
The main cconcern for governments is the permanent settlement of
migrants as the formation of new eethnic communities and an icrease
i ethnic and cultural diversity is reagrded as athreta to that
power . As such governemnets are keen to demonstrate that they are
able to manage , control or stop migration .
FIRST governments tend to divide international immigrants up into
categories , those migrants considered economically beneficial are
provided the documents in order to enter the country legally .
Examples are highly skilled and business migrants or lowers killed
temporary labour migrants , guest workers and those who move
because of family reunion , but their desirability and legality is
increasingly become a grey area.
SECOND governmenrts tend to regard an increase in ethnic and
cultural diversity as a threat to a countrys national sovereignity
and identity state ., through its government - exercise control
over who moves into and out of this domain A nation state depends
upon a cultural as well as a political unity in ordeer to survive .
Countries such as the new post colonial nation states in Africa ,
therefore emabarked on aprocess of nation building at the time of
their independence.
THIRDalthough government s recognise ther ole migration can play in
development , this recognition is driven by migration prevention
rather than development by migration . developmenbt policies ,
development assistance and trade liberalisation are regarded
effecetive remedies against migration , basd on the premise that
increased economic developmkent in migrant sending countries will
lessen the need or wish people to migrate , This however disregards
the understandings that oit is not the very poor who migrate.
CONCLUSION
Current responses of migrant receiving governemnts and societies
disregard the realities of migratory flows and hamper the
developmental contribution migration could make . Restrictive
discriminatory immigration measures have left migrants increasingly
without a means to protect themselves from exploiitation an dor
abuse.Posting migrants as foreigners xenophobia and irregular and
crimianlised migration .
The option of enforced assimilation is neither realistic nor just
and contadicts the transnational character of globalisation .
designing policies that focus on development as migration
prevention instead of on migration for development stimulation tend
to come at the cost of the worlds poor international migration
affects practically every state in the world , either as a country
of origin, as a place of destination or both .
The rise in xenophobia and irregular and criminalised migration and
the consequent explouitation and or abuse of migrants as aresult of
restrictive discriminatory immigration measures , weaken huamn
rights and the idea of democracy.
A change in both the design of policies and the political and
popular discourse with regards to intrnational migration is needed.
A change that not only takes account , but celebrates the important
contribution migrants make towards the development of their
countries of origin and towards the prosperity of destination
countries .