The Migration–Development Nexus: Somalia Case Study

The humanitarian disaster in 1992 made the Somalis known throughout the world. The first image that appeared in the Western part of the world was the broadcast of the famine caused by the civil war. This was followed by the international intervention known as UNOSOM, when CNN covered the landing of the American intervention forces in December 1992. The next image was the fatal confrontation between UNOSOM and the local warlord, General Aideed, which resulted in the withdrawal of UNOSOM in 1995. During that period the West also came to know the Somalis more intimately as thousands of them had fled and spread to North America and Northwestern Europe. This encounter was not without problems, and raised issues such as how to integrate Somalis into society, and how and when they could be expected to return to Somalia. Today, this experience has spurred a new policy trend among Western governments that aims at directing aid to the “neighbouring” areas of refugee–generating conflicts to keep the refugees in their region. These debates are unfortunately often full of myths, and tend to suggest policies often lacking a substantial basis. Hence, this article is part of a project that attempts to shed some light on contemporary migration processes and the possible linkages between the diasporas and the social and economic development in their country of origin. The case study describes the main flows of migration in modern Somali history, and how the emerging Somali diaspora maintains links to their kin via inventive remittance systems. The possible impact of remittances on local development in Somalia is addressed in the paper, and it concludes that the linkages between aid and migration–related resource transfers are multidimensional and that development can lead to migration and vice versa. It also concludes that there is a dire need for more knowledge on the issue, which is reflected in the lack of data found for this specific case. The case shows that poverty is not the only factor for the Somali migration history. Rather, the main reason has been the intertwining of political conflict and the search for economic opportunity. Furthermore, the important effect of remittances on socio–economic development correlates with political stability, providing an environment for productive investments. It is also shown that remittances have been far more important for livelihood and survival in Somalia than development and humanitarian aid put together.