Young Ethiopian women’s migration to the Middle East : Agency, decision-making processes and empowerment

This study explored the decision-making processes and negotiations within the family and community and the factors that influence the young women’s agency and negotiation capacity during their migration to the Middle East in Maichew town, Ethiopia. Data were collected through semi-structured interview with 23 respondents including returnees, parents, siblings, and a broker. Participant observation and informal conversations were also conducted. The decision-making process is found to be complex for it is influenced by different actors and hap-pens in socio-economically limited options. An important finding of the research is that migration is a household decision in which the young women migrate for a paid employment and remit money home to help the family. However, the young women also participate in the decision-making with varying degrees of involvement. Poor familial economic position, gender norms, age intersect and affect their agency. Therefore, the young women sometimes are pressurized to migrate with a less influence over the decisions, quite a few of them are involved in the decision-making processes. Still, some of them also migrate upon their own initiations and decisions without other’s involvement. However, the young women themselves usually finish the remaining process once the need for migration and destination is agreed and the finance for brokerage and transportation to the capital is accomplished. The migrants made use of networks in both their original place and destination to collect information, gain emotional support, safety net and accommodation. Their migration is found to have a mixed impact; while it helped them to economically be autonomous and attain freedom and some social positive gains, they also endure negative experiences.