Old Testament Perspective on Migration and Its Implications for Africans in Diaspora (Published)
This paper explores the Old Testament perspective on migration and its implications for Africans in the diaspora. Migration has been a significant aspect of human history, shaping societies and cultures across the globe. Africans in the diaspora have a unique experience of migration, often driven by historical factors such as the transatlantic slave trade. By examining Old Testament narratives, this paper aims to shed light on the theological and ethical dimensions of migration and provide insights into the experiences of Africans in the diaspora. The paper emphasizes themes of displacement, liberation, justice, and cultural preservation within the context of migration while acknowledging the complexity and diversity of the African diaspora experience.
Keywords: Africans, Diaspora, Hospitality, Justice, Migration
Migrant Remittances and Naira Price of the Dollar (Published)
This study investigated the possibility that the large amount of diaspora dollar remittance to the Nigeria economy could positively impact the naira price of the dollar (exchange) rate. Our methodology employed the Johansen cointegration test (JCT).The trace statistics result shows the null hypothesis that: there is no cointegration is rejected. Thus the trace test shows, there is at least one co-integrating vector. Furthermore, the output of the Max-Eigen statistics indicates that there is a strong evidence to reject the null hypothesis of no cointegration, implying there is long run relationship among the variables. Though diaspora remittance (logrem) has positive and significant long run effect on the domestic price of the naira (logexch) to the dollar, its coefficient (3.220574) is not sufficiently large when compared with oil price (24.56832) (logoilprice). We therefore conclude that though diaspora remittances influences the domestic naira price of the dollar, its impact on the domestic on the wider exchange rate market is insignificant.
Keywords: Exchange Rate, Foreign Reserves, Migration, diaspora remittance
Settler- Indigene Relations in Nigeria, 1920- 2014 (Published)
This study highlights the interaction between settler migrant farmers and their host societies in the Western cocoa producing areas and some food producing areas of central part of Nigeria between the 1920s and 2014. The choice of date is informed by the time of the introduction of commercial cocoa production in Western Nigeria while 2014 is the year in which the dislocation of the peace in the food producing area, occasioned by the Chibok girls kidnap saga began. Using extant literature and field data in the study areas, the paper asserts that contrary to popular generalisations in some literature that ethnicity, economic interest, cultural and religious differences have engendered conflicts among indigene-settler relations, the people in our study area have coexisted peacefully. The paper examined the geo-economic imbalance in the distribution of resources which necessitated migration; the common need for capital formation to exploit the resources; use of non-economic methods like kinship ties, ethnic affiliations, and some customary obligations have remained important indicators in the rural social and economic life. It is the observation of this paper that the rural farming societies of our investigation, though an agglomeration of different ethnic nationalities, yet maintained a symbiotic economic and social cooperation in a system-devised method of absorbing the shocks and sometimes strained relationship among them, in a participatory way.
Keywords: Farmers, Indigene, Labour, Migration, Rural, Settler
Understanding Rural-Urban Migration from the Perspectives of Migrants in Agbogbloshie, Ghana (Published)
About half of the urban growth in Africa is accounted for by migrants from rural areas yet we fail to understand migration from the perspectives of the migrants. This paper seeks to understand rural urban migration from the perspective of migrants and how this can inform rural development planning. A mixed research design was adopted to explore the decision making process around migration. In-depth interviews were held with migrants in Agbogbloshie and their families in Yendi where they have come from. The paper found that while rural-urban migration will persist for a long time because of the deprivation in rural areas, migrants have plans to return home. Planning would need to shift from the conventional approaches of general rural development towards a good understanding of rural development problems unique to certain areas.
Keywords: Africa, Development, Ghana, Migration, Planning, Urbanisation
Insights into Francophone Cameroonians’ Experiences in Active Participation in Protestant Churches and Mission in Bamenda, Cameroon (Published)
This article is an investigation into the processes behind Cameroon Francophone’s involvement in historical churches in Bamenda to ultimately analyse how these churches aid migrants’ integration into the host society. Attributing the presence of Francophone Christian communities in Bamenda to internal immigration forces, the paper shows how Francophone Cameroonians depend on religion to cope with the difficulties of living in a Bamenda society that is foreign to them. Based largely on archival and oral sources, the paper examines the issues related to migrants’ integration in churches in Bamenda as well as the development of immigrant congregations of some historical Francophone churches in the host society. The paper submits that the insensitivity of host historical churches in Bamenda to migrants’ participation difficulties occasioned the development of migrant-led churches which serve as loci for identity and as avenues for adapting into the socio-religious context of the host society.
Keywords: Bamenda, Churches, Francophone Cameroonians, Integration, Migrant-Led Churches, Migration, National Unity.