The Institute for Social Policy of the Higher School of Economics held a meeting of its regular seminar “Migration studies”

On April 24, 2018 Ekaterina Ermakova, Institute of African Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences, gave a talk on "Disciplinary practices and boundaries of the public in Cairo through the eyes of a migrant" at the regular "Migration studies" seminar organized by the Institute of Social Policy at the Higher School of Economics.

The outburst of conflicts in the Middle East intensified migration processes in the region, while the issues of migrants' adaptation in these countries were not practically articulated, remaining secondary to the problems of the refugee crisis in Europe. Cairo is a multi-million city with a high population density. It represents a unique example of an urban environment that provides for a relatively effective integration of migrants in conditions of minimal state intervention. This phenomenon was based on traditional mechanisms that gave the local population a significant share of independence in establishing and maintaining the boundaries of private-public. In Ermakova’s opinion, the success of migrant adaptation in the new environment depended on these mechanisms.

The presentation contained the results of a research based on a series of interviews with Egyptian re-emigrants from the oil-producing countries of the Middle East (Libya, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait) and migrants from the CIS and Europe from 2009 to 2015.

Seminar "Migration studies" (Higher School of Economics) is designed as a platform for presentation by scholars engaged in migration studies their academic research, as well as for the discussion among experts. The seminar is focused on an interdisciplinary approach and unites specialists from different fields: economists, sociologists, geographers, historians, anthropologists who deal with this problem. The seminar is open not only for academics, but also for all those interested in the migration studies.