Why are African immigrants on their way to Europe?

“The migration flux is not a new problem, it has just grown a lot lately”, started his analysis of the situation Sandor Balogh. Many Africans have left their homes since the 1980s in order to find a better life. One of the reasons for this is that a lot of (often false) information has reached Africa about the standard of life in the west and it is in sharp contrast with the local experience.

However, changes in the African way of life started long before this. People living in their natural environment were forced to live in the cities that grew much bigger but were unable to provide jobs for the masses.

At the same time the standard of living has been decreasing as there are a lot of young people on the continent but the labor market, the economy is unable to keep up with such a huge growth in the population.

That is why there are more and more people leaving their homes in hope for a better future. The president of AHU said that the solution to this problem could lie in the stabilization of these countries. Part of the aid from the west does not actually help and another part never reaches the African economy. Neither those in need, nor the stagnating economy can benefit from this. Most of the aid stays in the hands of the leading elite who do not invest in their own countries but take it out of the country – where the money comes from.
In order for these countries to have a normal economy, they need democratization and stabilization of the political situation. All this indeed requires the help from the west (especially of the ex-colonizers) but is not enough in itself. The biggest effort is needed from the African countries themselves – for themselves.

Photo: Europress AFP Images