The Politics of Asylum in Africa

Abstract

As illustrated by the cases of Kenya, Tanzania and Guinea, host states in Africa do not formulate their asylum policies in a political vacuum. Instead, asylum policies are affected by a range of political, economic and historical factors, often unrelated to the presence of refugees. While the importance of these factors is clearly recognized by representatives of African host states, they have not been given the prominence they deserve in research on refugees in Africa. In fact, a critical understanding of these factors, their origins and how they interact has not figured prominently in the literature on asylum in Africa. Given the changing nature of asylum policies, however, and the range of factors unrelated to the presence of refugees that can affect the quantity and quality of asylum afforded by a host state, a more critical understanding of these broader factors is crucial for a more effective engagement with the question of asylum in Africa.