Life in the post-return period: evidence from migrant women returnees in Wourgessa town, Ethiopia

ABSTRACT

This article examines the post-return life experiences of Ethiopian migrant women returnees from domestic work in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The returnees live in Wourgessa town located in Habru district, North Wollo zone of Amhara National Regional State. Labor migration abroad from the town has been ingrained in the socio-economic life of the local people in which regular and irregular migration has become the norm with the culture of migration developed over the years. The paper draws on the social constructivist research paradigm, which explains reality as a social construct. Employing a qualitative research method with in-depth interviews, key informant interviews and focus group discussions used as methods of the primary data collection, the article explores the post-return lived experiences of the returnee women. It analyzes the returnees’ socio-economic reintegration, experience with polygamous marriages, household relations and decision-making, and the local community perspectives on the reintegration of migrant returnees.

KEYWORDS:

• Women returnees
• reintegration
• household relations
• decision-making

Acknowledgements

I acknowledge participants of this study including the returnee women and their families, community members, the local administration in Wourgessa town, and Habru District Islamic Affairs Council.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Woldia Town Administration Assessment Reports (April 2015) on the Causes and Impacts of Trafficking of Women and Children, Woldia.

2 Wourgessa Town Agricultural Office Report on Annual Crop Production Rate, Wourgessa (June 2014).

3 Wourgessa Town Agricultural Office Report on Annual Crop Production Rate, Wourgessa (June 2014).

4 The Hajj and Umrah are Muslim pilgrimage and visits to the Holy cities in Saudi Arabia. Hajj is a religious obligation to all Muslims practiced once in a year, but Umrah is not a religious obligation and can be practiced throughout a year. The Hajj pilgrimage still continues with age limits for pilgrims (40 or above) while the Umrah was closed in late 2006 (Habru District Islamic Affairs Council 2011).

5 A mixture that includes tobacco, honey, hashish and spices and smoked for its strong effects of stimulation.

6 Community-based voluntary association established for the purpose of mutual aid in matters of burial and other community concerns.

7 The code of Islamic law derived from the Holy Quran and from the teachings of the Prophet Mohammed.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Mesfin Dessiye

Mesfin Dessiye lives in the town of Gondar, Amhara National Regional State, Ethiopia. I am a faculty in the Department of Social Anthropology, College of Social Sciences and Humanities at University of Gondar, one of the 1st generation universities in Ethiopia. I received PhD in Social Anthropology from Addis Ababa University in 2018, and MPhil in Gender and Development from University of Bergen in 2011. I also completed MA in Social Anthropology at Addis Ababa University in 2007. My research areas include transnational migration, gender and development, and displacement and reintegration of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). I also have research interest in conflict and peace building studies, indigenous knowledge systems, and care and support for vulnerable groups or communities.