Or trapped in place?

Even as you read this, you may have called to mind the often bitter political conflicts which surround debates over the rights of migrants or refugees to enter wealthier countries. ‘Mobility’ may be celebrated in the West as the basis of the contemporary global economy, but the movement of people across national borders, especially those of wealthier Western countries, is increasingly strictly controlled.

The consequences of all this movement are not always positive in terms of welfare or economic growth – some places lose out from globalization and inequalities across the globe are increasing. More than that, some people in some places do not have the opportunity to move – they may have little choice but to stay where they are.

Refugees in many conflict situations are actively encouraged or perhaps coerced to remain in the region of the conflict, and to return home, rather than seek exile status in other, wealthier countries or even to settle permanently in safer neighbouring states.

‘Fortress Europe’, defended against unwanted migration, is a stark reminder that some kinds of movements are not always possible even as many experiences of mobility or displacement are far from desirable. So, while the global political economy might seem to have become characterized by flows and displacements, there are also powerful forces at work which are re-emphasizing the importance of boundaries in economic and social life.

The meaning and practice of development

In the context of these different types of displacement, development and how we think about it have also had to change. Dramatic forced displacements are causing development and relief workers to question the significance of national borders and sovereignty.

At the same time the growing globalization of the economy and the transnationalization of social life are posing substantial challenges to existing development thinking and practice. Consider the case of humanitarian organizations, which are increasingly coming up against attempts to limit their actions across national borders, and who are consequently questioning restrictions on taking aid into nationally controlled territories.

The concerns and practices of humanitarian and aid workers are part of the challenges to the borders and divisions which characterize the existing form of global politics based on a system of nation-states.

Similarly, many national communities are spread across the world, forming diasporic networks and retaining close ties and national identifications, but who are not contained within the physical borders of the nation-state.

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