Guest Post: Ethiopia and Horn of Africa Migration: Push or Pull?

By  Magill Dyess Martini

In a theory of migration, the forces that cause people to move around the globe can either be push or pull forces. The human movement is in Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa. What extreme circumstances would make Ethiopia to distant countries as undocumented immigrants?

Compelling forces that pull people to move from one place to another simply when people seek a change in their lives, or when they would like to experience a new culture. It can also include pursuing better opportunities like work or service in other parts of the world. The forces that push people to move from one place to another are fundamentally different. They occur due to the forceful pressure of human will. This pressure might come in the form of psychological, emotional or physical imposition. War, political oppression, severe poverty, social and cultural marginalization or religious persecution are examples of push factors to migrate.

We have seen an increase in migration through the years as parts of the globe experience rapid growth and modernization. The contributing factors to this migration will vary widely from case to case and country by country.

An estimated 2,323 million people around the world are currently living away from their homes. More than 25 million Indians and around 7 million South Koreans live away from their homelands. It is believed that 3 to 6 million United States citizens live outside of their country at any given time. Interestingly, the US has become the chosen destination of millions of immigrants from all parts of the world. More than 3 per cent of the global population lives outside of their native country at present.

Migration in the Ethiopian and Horn of Africa are characterized by economic and political pushers. The Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa at Large.

The Ethiopian government has maintained a claim of double digit growth for the last decade. In any real world situation when a country experiences exponential growth gainful employment and income must increase. If these were truly the case then you would expect to see the numbers of undocumented migrants decrease. It is difficult to eliminate all together, but it would have to decrease if economic opportunity were to increase. The truth is that there is something wrong with this growth.

The unemployment rate is expectedly high in Horn of Africa countries, especially in Ethiopia and Djibouti. For example Djibouti registered unemployment at 60 percent which is the highest of Horn of Africa countries and one of the highest in the world. The irony is that Ethiopia and Eritrea are looking for better employment rates than some of the countries are trying to emigrate to. For example, Greece reports at 26.8 percent, Spain at 24.3 percent and South Africa at 25 percent while Ethiopia reports an unemployment rate at only 17.5 percent and surprisingly Eritrea at 8.6 percent which is among the lowest unemployment rates in the world. As we can see the unemployment rate is not always one of the obvious indicators of migration from Horn of Africa countries.

Ethiopians, especially those who reside in the capital City of Addis Ababa and other major cities, is the negative impact of the glitz economy. Countries which experience 'glitz type growth can not meet the economic needs of young people because the gap between demand and supply is too broad. Young people unfairly see new recreation centers, they can not afford them. They see, but they can not even afford taxis or buses and the like. This dilemma can damage the psychology of the new generation and as a result they may wish to escape to a world where opportunities are accessible. So again, this type of growth might make a cause for young people to make the dangerous journey abroad.

A big push factor for young people is expectations of parents and extended family. Ethiopian young people are in need of support and their extended families. There is no social welfare system or support for the young or aged from the government. Parents wants to look after their children once they have grown. The saddening fact for young Ethiopian people who are eager to work. This reality puts pressure on them to sacrifice their safety in order to help their families to survive.

When we talk about family responsibility women are at great risk to destitution by migration. We see millions of young Ethiopian women emigrating to Arab Gulf countries to be housemaids. Aware of low wages, physical abuse and sexual harassment. Men are therefore at great risk to destitution by migration. We see millions of young Ethiopian men emigrating to European countries in search of opportunity. Many young Ethiopian and Eritrean people have risked their lives on the treacherous deserts of the Middle East and smuggler ships of the Mediterranean Sea.

In general, the economic pushers in this region can be considered one of the major factors for young people to leave their country and make the dangerous journey of undocumented migrant.

Political push, like economic push, is one of the major factors for Ethiopia and Horn of Africa migration. In fact, it is often hard to distinguish between the economic and political pushers in the Ethiopian context as you will see. More worryingly, economic opportunities are often withheld or unavailable for many citizens due to political interference.

During a recent political debate in Ethiopia, Foreign Minister Tedros Adhanom commented that Ethiopian migration is now considered as a "world phenomenon", with the reply that "migration happens everywhere". While I agree that migration is going on everywhere, my argument is that the forces are behind. In the case of the US and other wealthy countries, the main forces of migration are characterized by a willingness or choice to migrate. For example, some people abroad for military service, some for humanitarian work and some to teach English in Asia or the Middle East. In the case of Ethiopia and other poor countries, the main forces of migration are characterized by the fear of an uncertain future and a lack of freedom. In the least,

On the same stage, Dr. Tedros is one of the main reason for the increase in emigration. He gave the example of a group of 66 young people living in Kenya who contributed 4.2 million Birr to another country. I have many problems with this negative characterization of young Ethiopian entrepreneurs. A more likely scenario is that because of the monopolized business operations throughout the country. They are non-existent in the form of business loans and other investment incentives or subsidies. If the market were free and young people had access to finance or government support for business, then they would not leave the country to try and get rich quick.

In Ethiopia and Eritrea the national economy is actually supported by the contribution of monies. In fact, the Eritrean economy is highly dependent on remittance at the national level. It seems to be expressly pushing for migration for just such economic gain. In Ethiopia, instead of being advocates of worker's rights, government-backed agencies actually sell workers to Arab countries in exchange for ongoing support. Moreover, instead of being advocates of migrant's rights, government-sponsored agencies actually work together with human traffickers to collect fees for illegal immigration.

There is enormous evidence that the Ethiopian government violates human rights. Young people are one of the most targeted victims of freedom of expression and free flow of ideas. This social reality can be seen as one of the main reasons for migration. Political migration began in Ethiopia during the Derg regime during a period called the Red Terror. Many young Ethiopians fled the country to escape the emerging Socialist Military Government in the 1980s. The EPRDF (Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front) came to power in 1991. We have seen the numbers of asylum seekers and refugees in foreign countries .

Many studies show that there is a very high incidence of brain drain in Ethiopia today more than ever. The national symposium of Ethiopia Diaspora Ethiopia has lost a shocking 75 percent of its trained professionals. Mostly, physicians, engineers and scientists leave Ethiopia to seek asylum in developed countries. The government is saying that this is happening as a result of people pursuing better lives outside of Ethiopia. The truth is, however, that these professionals are pursuing careers outside of their chosen paths and they do not work in their related professions. Some of the physicians are taxi drivers, some engineers are waiting in the countries they live in.

Ethiopian young people do not have confidence in their government. The hope to change to unwanted government by ballot box is almost unthinkable for many young Ethiopians. There is no doubt this will have a negative impact on their dreams and future plans. In the recent 2015 election, preliminary reports show that the EPRDF and its local ethnic party partners swept the country with a 100 percent win. These results clearly show that Ethiopia is not experiencing democracy. Search results would never happen in a country building. Election site results show just search realities.

The evidence is located below where I have translated it to English. In the Sodo Region of Southern Ethiopia one Mr. Hilemariam Desalegn ran. Mr. Desalegn is the Prime Minister of the EPRDF party. See the election results for yourself below.

Serial number	Name of Candidate	Number of votes	Rank
1	Mr. Hailemariam Desalegn	46.154	1
2	Artist Desta Dea Gojele	2	2
3	Mr. Kagnu Seba Hirboro	2	2
4	Mr. Tesfaye Haile Zeke	0	4

Another sample in Southern Ethiopia was taken as this.

Serial number	Name of Candidate	Number of votes	Rank
1	Aster Dawit Toshe	724	1
2	Mr. Berbane Baza Bine	0	-
3	Mr. Wochafo Sadom Salte	0	-
4	Arega Abeta Ashabo	0	-
5	Shitaye Zara Helana	0	-
6	Mr. Tekle Boranba Urke	0	-

This result, for me, is an insult to democracy. At the same time it reiterates and reaffirms the stance of the European Union Election Observation Commission Ms. Ana Gomes to the 2015 election, or any other election in Ethiopia for that matter. The results show how their stance is appropriate and stands for justice and democracy.

In a country where there is little hope of change through government election there is a greater push for young people to leave the country. They might even think it better to leave. Long-term commitment to human rights. However, in a country where opposition party members are harassed and alternative ideas are counted as the enemy, it seems inevitable that young people are left to their homelands for good. Ethiopians to emigrate. Ethiopians to emigrate.

When we look at the number and frequency of internally displaced persons in Ethiopia we see that the condition of human rights is very bad. Due to land grabbing over a million people have been displaced. This harsh reality is directly related to government policies and it is as well as a further political push.

Generally speaking, Ethiopia and Horn of Africa is characterized by the push type influence. The economic pushers are highly associated with political problems either directly or indirectly. I think Ethiopians have come together to change their government. The international community and my own country.

I would like to thank Geletaw Zeleke for his help researching and preparing this article.