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Paper short abstract:

In order to evaluate the role that diaspora can play for their countries of origin, we analyze the weight and the socio-demographic characteristics of the migrant communities in the host country. Our study raises the question of their visibility and their capacity to organize themselves.

Paper long abstract:

This study aims at investigating to what extent the African diaspora communities can contribute economically (and politically) to their countries of origin. Based on existing databases at the international and national levels (in particular the United Nations databases, UN-DESA, the census in France, Afrobarometer surveys) on migrant communities from African countries, comparative analyses presented in this paper suggest different pattern of integration into the host societies. Four countries of origin are considered for a detailed analysis: Mali, Cameroun, Côte d'Ivoire and Madagascar. We examine the characteristics and the weights of the immigrant communities from these countries in France: how many are there? Where do migrants live? Who are they? What are their living conditions? How do they fit into their host country? These are the questions we try to answer. Although exclusively focused on migrants in France, the answer to the previous questions shed light on the characteristic features specific to each home country. The migrants' socio-economic profile and their way of integration in the host societies give indirectly to see what they come to look for, and finally inform on the mobilization potential for the development of the countries of origin.