Migration: a global question

Migration: a global question

1. The majority situation

   • It is sometimes thought that migration is a problem only for migrants or for the countries that receive it.
   • But the truth is that now more than ever, migration is a true global issue, not only because of the huge number of people who move, but because of the impact it has on the international community.
   • The fact that millions of people move from one country or continent to another has an influence on their places of origin, the countries migrants go through and where they arrive.

2. Coexistence in the country of destination

   • Usually, before traveling, people who migrate already think where they will arrive and have contacts to look for work. Then they locate where they will live and specify the work.
   • For all this, very active networks work in the countries of destination.
   • Once installed, newcomers make friends and organize everyday life. That includes communication with the family, through the internet and the telephone.

3. Relationship between nationals and foreigners

   • The level of education, age, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, being male or female, one's nationality, religion and other characteristics significantly influence the transfer to another country, whether regular or not, and for living together in the country of destination.
   • On the other hand, there is a lot of tension with the Africans.
   • Here in Ecuador, negative reactions to certain groups of immigrants from Colombia, Peru, Haiti and Cuba are increasing.

4. Women and migration

   • There is little talk about women and migration, but certainly many women have migrated. Others, on the other hand, have stayed and face the impacts of migration.
   • There is also what has been defined as feminization of work.

5. The transnational families

   • In the last decades families have changed in the world and in our environment. There is an increase in divorces and new marriages, reduction in the number of sons and daughters, variety of relationships, ways of sharing family spaces, etc.
   • The transnational family is the result of international migration.
   • Its members are in more than one country. For example, a family whose mother is in the US, the father and part of sons and daughters are still in Ecuador and another of the sons is in Italy.

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