PREFACE
One important gap in the literature on refugees’ and international migrants’ remittances concerns flows between developing countries. ‘South-South’ flows, particularly those to and from transit countries in the vicinity of conflict zones have not been researched. Transit countries are those that become way stations or stopping points in the journey from origin to intended destination countries.
In the east of the African continent, Egypt and Kenya are countries of first asylum for Sudanese and Somalis, but also transit settings for refugees and other migrants seeking to migrate to Europe, North America or the Gulf. The migration flows originating from a particular conflict-affected country are mixed. They usually include groups and individuals fleeing, or having been displaced by, the conflict and who seek asylum or resettlement in third countries. They also encompass others in pursuit of work or family reunification also in third countries. These migrants can be ‘stuck’ in transit countries, often for years, while they try to gather the funds needed to proceed with their journeys; they may also be blocked by visa requirements or policy shifts.
In an attempt to fill this gap, the Center for Migration and Refugee Studies (CMRS) teamed up with the Feinstein International Center, (FIC) Tufts University to conduct a three years research project on Sudanese refugees and migrants in Cairo and their transnational linkages with other Sudanese both in the Diaspora and in Sudan. Egypt being a country of first asylum for the Sudanese, as mentioned above, Cairo was selected to undertake a case study on their transnational linkages. The project, funded by the International Development Research Center (IDRC) represents the second phase of an earlier study conducted by FIC on transnational linkages between the Darfuris in Maine, USA and their families in Darfur, Sudan.
This study represents the first attempt by the Center for Migration and Refugee Studies (CMRS) to map the distribution of Sudanese refugees and migrants in Cairo with a view to identifying the main areas where they lived before administrating the survey. Forty-two sub-districts known for their high concentration of the Sudanese community were mapped so as to identify Sudanese households.
Another important contribution of this study relates to the dissemination of research findings. The research team conducted a series of organizational and community workshops to disseminate the project’s findings and to receive feedback from both the Sudanese refugee organizations and community. Public dissemination of the findings greatly benefited from these workshops. The community appreciated this endeavor, which made it an active participant in the research effort.
Importantly, while the findings of the study are specific to Sudanese refugees in Cairo, the research tools, mapping approach and methods developed, are replicable in other cities. They can also be used in the future to study the experience of other refugee populations in Cairo. The bases for a comparative study of the transnational linkages of different national groups of refugees and migrants in Cairo will have thus been established.
With the Cairo Studies on Migration and Refugees, CMRS aims at publishing innovative research on migration and refugees in the Middle East, Africa and globally. We invite you to read this new study, which represents an important addition to the series. The series is open to well established as well as to young researchers from AUC and from the national, regional and international research community.
Ibrahim Awad, Ph.D.
Director