Immigration and Pensée d'Etat

Moroccan migration policy changes as transformation of 'geopolitical culture

Bibliographic Data

ID3979301
AuthorsMyriam Cherti (University of Oxford), Michael Collyer (0000-0003-0407-5600, University of Sussex)
Year2015
Volume20
Issue4
Pages590-604
Publication date2015-08-08
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe Journal of North African Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1362-9387 • E-ISSN: 1743-9345
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/13629387.2015.1065043
OpenAlexW2136902234
LanguageFR
Citations received41
References cited9

According to Sayad's famous phrase, immigration policy reveals how a state 'thinks of itself'. Morocco 'thinks of itself' in very different ways: Arabic, Berber, Islamic, African, European, Maghrebian, Mediterranean, to name but a few. Each self-representation leads to an alternative set of policy orientations, and 'geopolitical cultures'. In terms of migration and mobility, however, the Moroccan government's approach, from its application to join the European Union in 1986 to the signature of a Mobility Partnership with the EU in 2013, suggests a more singular geopolitical culture, orientated predominantly towards its northern neighbours. This paper argues that the recent change of approach to immigration into Morocco, announced by the regularisations of 2013, involves a more profound way in which Morocco is now 'thinking of itself'. This much more positive, proactive approach is associated with a broader reorientation of Moroccan geopolitical culture towards the rest of Africa. This conclusion is substantiated by an empirical basis of interviews with sub-Saharan migrants in Morocco, undertaken as part of the Beyond Irregularity project from 2011 to 2013, supplemented with key informant interviews and analysis of recent policy developments. The paper argues that there is a close link between the geopolitical orientations suggested in migration policy and the broader international relations priorities of the State

Geopolitics · African Studies and Geopolitics · Migration, Refugees, and Integration · Multiculturalism, Politics, Migration, Gender