Migration patterns and emigrants’ transnational activities: comparative findings from two migrant origin areas in Ethiopia

Growing literature, including those published in this journal, provide important insights into the complex dynamics of immigrants’ transnational engagement by comparing different migrant populations residing in the same host society. However, extant research that provides an in-depth investigation of the interplay and dynamics that exist within the same ethnic origin is either sketchy or non-existent. It is therefore imperative to collect as detail and as relevant empirical data digging deeper into the individual nuances and cultural subtleties that exist within a group of migrant populations originating from a single country. Taking the case of Ethiopian immigrants, this research aims to fill a gap by examining the various overarching different migration regimes that shape immigrants’ transnational activities including return visits, non-direct family contacts and several features of remittances, including amounts, roles, directionality and intermediaries. A comparison of the two migration trajectories does not only reflect the dynamics of the configuration of migrant societies within Ethiopia but also the specific labour market demands of different countries/regions in terms of the profile of migrants, mainly their skills (low-skilled, unskilled, high-skilled) and genders (male-labour, female-labour) as well as the social transformations associated with migration and remittances. The legal status of migrants during travel, and upon reaching destination and associated mobility and immobility factors are increasingly affecting the migration outcome of these migrants.