Publication: São Tomé and Príncipe - Unpacking Migration Dynamics: Critical Issues and Policy Recommendations
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2025-01-16
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2025-01-16
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São Tomé and Príncipe (STP), a lower-middle-income small island nation, is undergoing a significant wave of emigration, primarily driven by limited job opportunities and economic prospects, particularly among younger generations. This paper explores migration's drivers, dynamics, and impacts on the country’s economy and social fabric, drawing on a combination of primary and secondary data sources. These include local emigration records, the national social registry, the latest household budget survey, global estimates of migrant stocks and remittance flows, and focus group discussions with migrant families. The findings reveal that at least 18 percent of STP’s population now resides abroad, with numbers growing rapidly. Migration is increasingly dominated by young individuals moving to Portugal, attracted by shared linguistic and cultural ties and facilitated by a recent Community of Portuguese Language Countries mobility agreement. However, migration currently delivers limited economic benefits to STP, as remittances are low, irregular, and constrained by high transfer costs, inadequate financial infrastructure, and migrants’ precarious employment abroad. Socially, migration may also disrupt family structures, particularly affecting children who face challenges in care and emotional wellbeing. Policy recommendations include enhancing migrants’ employability, exploring bilateral migration partnerships, strengthening migration management systems, improving remittance services, and supporting families who remain in the country through social assistance.
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“Monsalve Montiel, Emma Mercedes; Kroll, Guillaume; Barros Barbosa, Barbara; Mawete, Delfim Mampassi E. Martins; Boly, Mohamed. 2025. São Tomé and Príncipe - Unpacking Migration Dynamics: Critical Issues and Policy Recommendations. Social Protection and Jobs Discussion Papers; 2501. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/42699 License: CC BY-NC 3.0 IGO.”
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