The impact of ICTs (Information and Communication Technologies) on the drivers of migration

24.01.2018: Vortrag Raffaella PAGOGNA

Mittwoch, 24. Jänner 2018, 16:30 Uhr

Institut für Geographie und Regionalforschung

Universität Wien, Universitätsstr. 7/5, 1010 Wien, Konferenzraum


Ethiopia is experiencing a strong economic growth and migration trends and finds itself at a cross road of several mixed migration flows, in a region characterized by climatic and security instabilities. Commonly cited push factors from the country’s rural areas are drought and food shortages as well as the search for employment opportunities, which spark internal and cross-border migrations (AICS 2017). The preferred destinations for cross-border migration include neighboring countries, South Africa, the Middle East and Europe. In recent years the number of fatal migrant incidents at sea has multiplied – also concerning migrant deaths from and around the Horn of Africa. Despite of imbalanced access to information the individual choice of a migration route appears to be a rational individual choice that takes into account a balance between costs, risks and possible benefits. While the attention to irregular migration in connection with trafficking/smuggling/facilitating networks has led to an increase in pre-migration interventions so far, there is little evidence on practices that can foster safer migration. Data from recent case-studies show that urban youth are more vulnerable to irregular migration as they are more exposed to migration related information and influence.

I want to examine the role of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) based information exchange on the drivers of migration. With this talk I wish to give an insight into my research work in progress and my approach towards defining a suitable research question at the interface between „Migration Studies“, „Digital Geography“ and environmental change.

 

Raffaella Pagogna studied Social Anthropology with a focus on migration studies. Currently she holds a position as a university assistant at the Department for Geography and Regional studies of the University of Vienna. She has started her PhD last September. Prior to her PhD position she was working at the Diakonie Flüchtlingsdienst, a NGO providing legal information and assistance services to asylum seekers.