Perceived Impact of Border Closure due to Covid-19 of Intending Nigerian Migrants

Bibliographic Data

ID13055052
AuthorsLawan Cheri (Yobe State University, corresponding author)
Year2021
Volume9
Issue1
Pages207-215
Publication date2021-03-25
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueSocial Inclusion (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2183-2803 • E-ISSN: 2183-2803
PublisherCogitatio (PUBLISHER • PT)
DOI10.17645/si.v9i1.3671
OpenAlexW3136094616
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited10

With few exceptions, the European Council closed Europe for non-citizen travellers on 17 March 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Many African countries, including Nigeria, have placed travel restrictions on or completely shut their borders to both travellers who want to enter the country and citizens who want to leave. These decisions affect many intending migrants seeking a way to reach Europe. Health and socioeconomic uncertainties related to lockdowns, border closure, and in some cases travel restrictions directly affect the dynamics of decision-making by migrants. This article employs in-depth interviews and focus group discussions to explore the perception of Nigerians who intend to migrate considering the influence of Covid-19. The study focuses on Nigerian migrants but touches on Nigerians in transit who are trapped in Niger en route to Europe through Libya and Morocco. While border closure by most of the sending and receiving countries led to a decrease in the intention of migrants to travel, Covid-19 as a pandemic does not significantly influence migrants’ decisions primarily because of its global presence, merely leading to delays. In conclusion, after border reopening, intercontinental migration is expected to increase in both volume and intensity

Affect (linguistics · Closure (psychology · Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19 · Demographic economics · Development economics · Economic geography · Economics · Geography · Irregular migration · Nigerians · Pandemic · Perception · Political science · Population · Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2 · Socioeconomic status · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Demography · Law · Medicine · Migration and Labor Dynamics · Migration, Health and Trauma · Migration, Refugees, and Integration · Psychology

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