Articles

Migrant’s Lives – Part 1

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by P. Patricia Adams and Maria C. Latorre
21 May 2010

To accompany the launch of the Development on the Move final report, we asked a number of migrants from our case study countries to reflect on their experiences of migration, and to describe some of the challenges and opportunities it had provided them with, as well as what they think it means for development in their countries of origin. A selection of their stories are shared below, in the first of two articles. Click here for the second article.

Name: P. Patricia Adams
Migration history: Moved to Europe from Jamaica. Currently working for a UK-based organisation.

Reasons I left Jamaica

I first left Jamaica to attend university in Barbados. I lived there for two years. The University of the West Indies is a regional university and there are three main campuses, one each in Trinidad, Barbados and Jamaica. Depending on the course of study, one is required to attend one of the three main campuses. Law was taught in Barbados. I was therefore required to move to Barbados. After I completed my studies, I went home to take the Bar exam and then left Jamaica once more, but this time for the British Virgin Islands (BVI). I received a job as an Associate Lawyer at one of the leading offshore law firms. The experience was great, as it opened my eyes to another side of the law and areas of practice that are not found in Jamaica. It was also the first time I was truly living on my own. Living in Barbados was very different, because I was in school and lived in shared accommodation. In the BVI I had my own apartment. This was true independence.

After working for some time, I felt the desire to enhance myself academically and professionally. Consequently, I left the BVI and went to Europe to commence further studies. I lived in France and Scotland. The experience was great; living with people of different cultures and experiences was exhilarating. After completing my studies, I moved to London to work with an international organisation.

Personal growth

Living in a foreign country requires endurance. I did not know anyone in any of the countries I lived. I simply took a leap of faith and went. Such actions are not for the faint of heart. I have endured discrimination, depression and other imaginable consequences of migration. However, I have not allowed this to taint my image, consciousness or attitude. On the contrary, my self confidence has grown. Not only do I possess academic qualifications from leading European institutions, but I also have relevant work experience in a developed country through working with an international organisation.

In fact, I believe that because I have lived in so many countries, I am better able to deal with people from varying backgrounds. I am cultured and empathetic to others’ circumstances. These attributes have helped me in my job in London and will continue to help me as I advance in my career.

The experience of migration has given me new ideas, having seen how people live and having experienced different ways of doing things. I look at the world in a new way; I see development and potential where I once saw lack and devastation.

My plans for the future

I intend to return to Jamaica. It is my intention to take back all the experiences I have gained and help my country develop. I hope to take all the positives I have seen and learned to my country and continue on our path to development.

I do believe that had I not left Jamaica, I would not be the person I am today. I think it is good for developing country citizens to live outside of their country to see how the world is shaped, to experience and find new insights, to appreciate the obstacles we face and return with new ideas and help development. New ideas are born out of risks, which we can only experience once we leave our comfort zone. I am bursting with ingenuity and hope to share these thoughts with my fellow Jamaicans upon my return.

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Name: Maria C. Latorre
Migration history: Moved to the UK from Colombia in 2006 and has now returned home.

My expectations before migrating to the UK

I migrated from Colombia to the UK in 2006. I hadn’t been in the UK before and was moving to do a Masters degree in Social Policy in London. My motivation for going to the UK was to learn from the ‘first world’ how to reduce poverty in Colombia. I wanted to find out why people in the UK had better living conditions than ours. I thought that no one in Colombia could be smart enough to come up with a solution to our social problems, but in the UK I’d certainly find the answer to my one million pound question.

I consider myself lucky for having those expectations before migrating. Many Colombian migrants don’t have much time to think about their expectations. They need to get to a country where they can find a job to support their families back home. There is huge inequality amongst Colombians living in the UK. However, our reasons for migrating have something in common: we think opportunities in Colombia are not as good as in the UK.

So, is that true? In my case, I realised that Colombians underestimate the human capital we have in our country. I learned valuable things in the UK but also understood that the developing world cannot base its public policies on the ‘first world’ model. Migration is important for gaining knowledge but should not replace the in-house experience. For other Colombians, their expectations are achieved as long as they can support themselves and send money back to their families. However, that’s just a short-term solution for poverty in a country like Colombia. Migration is a good option for those with scarce opportunities but governments should not depend on that. Migration must be a choice rather than a forced action.

My experiences as a migrant in the UK

I lived in the UK for three years. During my first year I did a Masters and then got a job in a think tank, where I worked for two years. Getting a job in the UK wasn’t easy. I had a bachelor degree in Economics, two Masters and had been working for nearly five years in Colombia. However, after a few interviews, I realised that would not be able to get a job matching my qualifications. Why? It was simple: I had no work experience in the UK.

My job in the UK was as a research assistant, the same job I had had in Colombia when I first graduated from University (almost six years earlier). However, it was a great experience and I learned valuable things both personally and professionally. My position was downgraded but I was working on something related to my career and knew I could progress after a few years. Unfortunately, that is not the case for many Colombians in the UK. It is common to find professionals doing low-skill jobs and having no opportunities to get a job according to their qualifications and experience. They get trapped doing the jobs British people don’t want to do.

The benefits from migration are in some cases attached to great losses for migrants themselves. For many migrants, sending remittances back to their country implies doing a job that has nothing to do with their capabilities and aspirations. They find enormous barriers in the labour market and don’t get the opportunity to prove their potential. Governments should realise that helping migrants to progress would boost the gains from migration.

Read the second article

Links

www.ippr.org/research/teams/project.asp?id=2326&tID=3572&pID=2326