About the project
DYNAMIG is a three-year project that aims to create a more thorough understanding of how people make decisions on whether and how to migrate. We will analyse to what extent the diverse experiences of migrants are taken into consideration when migration policies – or policies that impact migration – are made. We will also look at how effective these policies are in shaping migrants’ decisions and behaviour.
The DYNAMIG project focuses on EU policies and on migrants from African countries and regions because Africa is the continent where proportionally the most people have aspirations to migrate and African countries are central to EU policies that aim to influence migration. Some of these policies aim to limit irregular border crossings, while others seek to improve living conditions elsewhere, promote regular migration or protect migrants’ rights.
But to analyse the extent to which EU policies influence migration movements and decisions on the African continent, we need to take into account the diversity of migrants’ personal experiences and consider policies in origin, transfer and host countries. That is why we will have conversations with migrants who are planning to leave, who are in transit and who have returned, and also look at African policies that impact migration.
Through this project, we aim to shed light on the complexities and challenges of migration and managing migration movements. We want to contribute to a more nuanced and evidence-based understanding of the diverse trajectories of migration and of policies that impact migration.
Methodology
The DYNAMIG project employs a mix of innovative data collection and analysis methods and draws on a range of social sciences: development economics, geography, media, politics, sociology and social statistics. The project’s most detailed data collection will focus on five African countries from three regions: Morocco, Tunisia, Senegal, Nigeria and Kenya.
Partners, timeline and funding
The DYNAMIG project involves eight research institutes, think tanks and universities in Europe and Africa and is led by the Kiel Institute for the World Economy. This project is funded by the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement number 101094347. It started on 1 January 2023 and will run until 31 December 2025.
Work packages
We have organised the DYNAMIG project work in ten work packages.
Work package 1: Management
Led by the Kiel Institute for the World Economy
Work package 1 comprises the overall management of the project, as well as coordination between the teams and the thematic and cross-cutting work packages.
Work package 2: Concepts, temporalities and dynamics
Led by Middlesex University
Work package 2 will develop and test the conceptual framework that will be used across the project. It aims to ensure that we generate data and evidence that will increase our understanding of the complex decision-making processes of diverse groups of people at different stages of migration.
Work package 3: Heterogeneity and perceptions
Led by the Kiel Institute for the World Economy
Work package 3 will improve our understanding of how migration decisions and the effects of policies depend on context and are heterogeneous. It will study the importance of structural factors affecting migration decisions – and subjective perceptions of these factors – and how the influence of these factors differs for characteristics such as gender, age, socioeconomic status and ethnicity.
Work package 4: Policy effectiveness
Led by the University of Luxembourg
Work package 4 will assess the effectiveness of policies – and the activities used to implement them – in influencing people’s migration decisions. It will help to understand why some well-intentioned policies might not work.
Work package 5: Policies and policymaking
Led by the European University Institute's Migration Policy Centre
Work package 5 analyses the extent to which migration policies or policies that impact migration take people’s behaviour into account, as well as their ability to shape people’s behaviour and decisions. It looks at how European and African policymakers think about migrants’ behaviour and migration processes.
Work package 6: Data, methods and open science
Led by Mohammed VI Polytechnic University
Work package 6 keeps track of the different data collection and analysis methods used across the project, monitors their quality and ensures systematic exchange on data and methods among teams. It also makes sure we share our results as widely as possible by applying open science practices.
Work package 7: Research ethics and gender
Led by Elizade University
Work package 7 aims to improve the quality of our work by promoting and incorporating gender equality and ethical standards throughout our research, collaboration and communication.
Work package 8: Joint knowledge creation
Led by AMADPOC
Work package 8 ensures that our work takes into account and builds on the knowledge, priorities and concerns of migrant and diaspora organisations, civil society organisations, partners familiar with labour market issues, policymakers and researchers in Europe and Africa.
Work package 9: Dissemination, communication and exploitation
Led by ECDPM
Work package 9 ensures that outreach and impact are central elements in all stages of the project and that our work is policy-relevant, timely and usable. It aims to get our research and recommendations to the right people, at the right time and in the right way.