Everybody has his/her luck: Irregular migration of young people from Ghana to Libya and beyond

Abstract

Despite several negative media reports on the plight of irregular migrants, some young Ghanaians continue to seek greener pastures in Libya and beyond. This paper examines the motives, achievements and main reasons for return of these migrants who are resident in both the Techiman and Nkoranza Municipalities. Using the snowball sampling technique, 200 return migrants were interviewed in the study areas. They were mostly young males who had completed Junior High School (JHS), and the main motive for migration was economic. The target destinations were Spain, Italy, Germany and other European countries (85 per cent) with Libya as a transit country to these countries. Migration networks exist among current, return and potential migrants which facilitate and sustain irregular migration from the study areas. The main reasons for the return included harassment from security personnel, family re-union and ill-health. Strategies to address irregular migration in the study areas will need to consider skills training for young school leavers, especially those unable to proceed beyond Junior High School.