Returnees' Attributes and Proximate Reasons of Home Return: The Case of Asmara, Eritrea

Abstract

In the aftermath of national independence (1993), Eritreans residing in various countries around the world decided spontaneously to return home. This article examines the return migration to the capital city of Eritrea, based on interviews with 600 returnees. Specifically examined are characteristics of the respondents, profiles of the host countries they had left behind, and principal reasons for their return. The majority of the returnees were male, in their 50s, married with 4 to 9 family members, spoke more than three languages, with junior and secondary school education. Most of the returnees were from the Tigrigna ethnic group and they came from Ethiopia and Sudan, the nearest neighboring countries to Eritrea. Returnees made a series of stops while returning home and visited home at least twice while they were in exile. Eritrea s liberation, political situation in the host countries, and family problems were the most common reasons for their home return. These results have policy implications for government and non-government agencies involved in supporting returnees in their readjustment challenges.