Report by Zack Zimbalist, Ph.D.

Contrary to prominent narratives in the media, most African migrants move across borders within the continent, and most often to other countries in their immediate region rather than to Europe or elsewhere.

In a new publication titled “Regional Economic Communities and Attitudes Toward Free Cross-Border Movement in Africa,” I demonstrate how regional economic blocs in Africa play an important role in shaping public attitudes toward free movement. More specifically, the article shows that individual support for open borders is significantly higher in regional blocs with well-established free movement protocols and supportive policies, such as ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) and the EAC (East African Community), compared to Africans residing in blocs with more restrictive mobility and labor market integration policies such as SADC (Southern African Development Community). These analyses are based on 43,000 survey respondents across 36 African countries.

The article offers a new contribution to the public attitudes toward immigration policy literature, which has neglected the importance of regional economic communities even though they are a crucial instrument in determining national-level migration and integration policy within Africa and beyond.

The article, published in International Migration Review, is available Open access here: Regional Economic Communities and Attitudes Toward Free Cross-Border Movement in Africa - Zack Zimbalist, 2025

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