Migration and Gender

Migration is multifaceted and dependent on many factors. Gender has increasingly become recognised as a major factor contributing to migration motives, experiences, and outcomes. Women and girls remain the most vulnerable migrant groups. In addition to the challenges of migration, they are also exposed to higher risk of sexual abuse, human trafficking, and other forms of exploitation – especially in the context of irregular migration. According to the International Organization for Migration, women account for 48.1% of all international migrants amounting to around 135 million refugees.

Many stakeholders have thus acknowledged the importance of disaggregating migration data by sex and age, to ensure that challenges faced by female migrants are given due diligence. This is why the African Union has identified Migration and Gender as one of its cross-cutting areas. With more women migrating for various reasons, the interaction of gender and migration demands higher attention. Moreover, migration policies can be inclusive only when they reflect the unique issues faced by different groups and under different contexts.

The nexus between gender and mobility – be it voluntary or forced, regular or irregular – is one of the priority areas of FES AMPC. In this regard, we commission studies and organize policy dialogues to explore the gender aspect of migration in Africa. We aim to contribute gender sensitive perspectives and to increase the evidence around the nexus between migration and gender.