Adolescent Migration in Rural Africa as a Challenge to Gender and Intergenerational Relationships

Evidence from Mali

Bibliographic Data

ID5741382
AuthorsVéronique Hertrich, Marie Lesclingand (0000-0002-4900-768X)
Year2013
Volume648
Issue1
Pages175-188
Publication date2013-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0002-7162 • E-ISSN: 1552-3349
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/0002716213485356
OpenAlexW2166266670
LanguageEN
Citations received19
References cited10

Labor migration has become common for adolescents in many African populations, where it is a key event in the transition into adulthood for both genders. This article examines the experiences of, expectations of, and perceptions about adolescent migration from different perspectives, taking into account their gender and generation. It is based on qualitative data, collected from a rural population in Mali, where labor migration is experienced by most adolescents (70-90 percent). Despite a convergence of migratory practices between genders, the subjective experience and the social construction around youth migration appear to be in contrast for girls and boys. Male migration is part of family economics, and adolescent boys use migration to strengthen their family status. Female migration is a personal project and includes strong expectations about learning and obtaining life skills. Social judgment of female migration is negative, but new lines of solidarity are emerging between female generations

Convergence (economics) · Demographic economics · Developmental psychology · Economic growth · Economics · Perception · Political science · Population · Sociology · Solidarity · Child Nutrition and Water Access · Demography · Migration and Labor Dynamics · Poverty, Education, and Child Welfare · Psychology

Tools

Open DOISci-Hub