African asylum-seekers want to return, but with some money and skills

Vienna, 20.2.2019 – A new study by Transcultural Campaiging about French speaking Sub-Saharan African asylum -seekers in Germany and Austria is based on interviews with 159 persons conducted in seven cities yielded a number of surprising results. (download: English version, German version)

Most respondents said they never planned claiming asylum but came to Europe to “earn, learn and return” in order to build a new life at home. Which EU-Member State they end up in is rather a matter of chance than of choice. The vast majority of interviewed persons have middle-class background, they have formal schooling up to secondary level or skilled worker training.

When asked about European migration policy, the respondents made very rational and feasible suggestions on curbing irregular migration and on sustainable return programmes. Hence, the study contains a list of policy suggestions originating from the respondents themselves. Melita H. Sunjic, from Transcultural Campaigning points out that such a participatory approach is quite unusual in migration debates, where the affected people normally have no voice, but it is helpful in finding widely acceptable and sustainable solutions.

The research was funded mainly by the German Foreign Ministry and received additional financial support from the Austrian Defense Ministry and the Austrian Study Center for Peace and Conflict Resolution.