Unaccompanied minors and youth migrants from Mauritania to France are almost never listed in French published statistics, even though the alarmist response of local Mauritanian organizations indicates that many are migrating. To understand this apparent contradiction, we analyze data from a qualitative study of 395 male minors (15–18 years old) and youths (above 18 years old) in three Mauritanian cities—Kaédi, Nouakchott, and Nouadhibou—to shed light on illegal youth migration. We find that powerful cultural and family dynamics encourage youth migration and that the migration of individual youths is approached as a project of families and not of the individuals alone. The article also highlights the impact of migration on Mauritanian society and recommends a new immigration policy for Europe.
AdamsAdrian. 1977. Le long voyage des gens du fleuve [The long journey of the people of the river]. Paris: F. Maspero.
2.
BiarnèsJean. 1996. La trahison culturelle [Cultural betrayal]. In La question du sujet en éducation et formation, ed. BouchardPascal, 97–126. Paris: L’Harmattan.
3.
BolzmanClaudioGakubaTheogeneGuisseIbrahima. 2011. Migrations des jeunes d’Afrique Sub-saharienne: quels défis pour l’avenir? [Youths’ migrations from sub-Saharan Africa: What challenges for the future?]. Paris: L’Harmattan.
4.
DEI. 2008. Droits de l’enfant en France: Au pied du mur. Saint Denis, France: DEI.
5.
DiaHamidou. 2007. Les investissements des migrants dans la vallée du fleuve Sénégal: confiance et conflits d’intérêts [Migrants’ investments in the Senegal River valley: Trust and conflicting interests]. Revue Européenne des Migrations Internationales23:29–49.
6.
DrisCherif. 2007. La question migratoire dans les relations euroméditerrannéenne. Entre intégration et obsession sécuritaire [Migration issues in Euromediterranean relations. Between integration and security obsession]. Hommes et Migrations1266:126–39.
7.
El YessaAbderrahman. 2009. Le retour des réfugiés mauritaniens au Sénégal et au Mali, vingt ans après la crise de 1989 [The return of Mauritanian refugees to Senegal and Mali, 20 years after the 1989 crisis]. CARIM Rapport de recherche 2009/11, European University Institute, Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies, San Domenico di Fiesole, Italy.
8.
KaboretYalacé Y.2002. Eviter la fuite des cerveaux en Afrique subsaharienne: Rôle des institutions sous-régionales de formation et de recherche [Avoiding brain drain in sub-Saharan Africa: The role of subregional institutions for training and research]. Paper presented at the Regional Conférence on Exodus of Competences and Capacity Development in Africa, 22–24 February, Addis-Ababa, Ethiopia.
9.
LessaultDavidBeaucheminCris. 2009. Ni invasion, ni exode. Regards statistiques sur les migrations d’Afrique subsaharienne [Neither invasion nor exodus. A statistical view on migrations from sub-Saharan Africa]. Revue Européenne des Migrations Internationales25 (1): 163–94.
10.
MandraudIsabelle. 16July2009. Roissy, terminal des mineurs du monde. [Roissy airport, a terminal for minors of the world]. Le monde.
11.
MondainNathalieDiagneAliouneRandallSara. 2010. Migration and intergenerational responsibilities: Implications for the transition to adulthood of young Senegalese migrants. Paper presented at the International Seminar on Youth Migration and Transition to Adulthood in Developing Countries, 8–10 December, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
OttieriMaria Pace. 2007. Une fois que tu es né tu ne peux plus te cacher. Ils déferlent sur l’Europe au prix de leur vie. Qui sont-ils ?Que veulent-ils? [Once you are born, you can no longer hide. They flood over Europe at the cost of their lives. Who are they? What do they want?]. Vevey, Switzerland: Xenia.
14.
ParkerRon. 1991. The Senegal-Mauritania conflict of 1989: A fragile equilibrium. Journal of Modern African Studies29 (1): 155–71.
15.
RaimbeauCécile. 16May2008. Harraga: ces enfants qui “brûlent” les frontières [Harraga: Those children who “burn” the boarders]. Le Courrier.
16.
SegallMarshall H.DasenPierre R.BerryJohn W.PoortingaYpe H.1999. Human behavior in global perspective. 2nd ed.Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.
17.
SowAbdoulaye. 2009. Les mécanismes du mensonge collectif chez les immigrés Mauritaniens en France et les conséquences sur les jeunes au pays [The collective lie among Mauritanian immigrants in France and its consequences on youths in the home country]. Paper presented at the XIIe Congrés international de l’ARIC, 29 June–3 July, Florianopolis, Brazil.
18.
Streiff-FenartJocelynePoutignatPhilipp. 2008. Nouadhibou “Ville de transit”? Le rapport d’une ville à ses étrangers dans le contexte des politiques de contrôle des frontières de l’Europe [Nouadhibou “Transit City?” The relation of a city to its foreigners in the context of European border control policies]. Revue Européenne des Migrations Internationales24 (2): 193–217.
19.
TanonFabienneSowAbdoulaye. 2010. La migration des mineurs Mauritaniens: Entre arguments culturels et logiques souterraines [Mauritanian minor migration: Between cultural arguments and underground dynamics]. Migrations Société22 (129–130): 207–26.
20.
TanonFabienneSowAbdoulaye. 2011. Migration des jeunes et transformation de la société en Mauritanie [Youth migration and social transformation in Mauritania]. In Migrations des jeunes d’Afrique Sub-saharienne: Quels défis pour l’avenir?eds. Claudio Bolzman, Theogene Gakuba, and Ibrahima Guisse. Paris: L’Harmattan.
21.
UNESCO. 2004. La fuite des compétences en Afrique francophone. Etat des lieux, problèmes et approches de solutions [Flight of competences in Francophone Africa. State of affairs, problems and tentative solutions]. Paris: UNESCO. Available from http://unesdoc.unesco/images/0013/001356/135651f.pdf.
