Promise and Peril: Migration Management Technologies in West Africa and Central America

As the United States and Europe address the growing challenge of managing migration flows, they have significantly expanded their engagement with migration origin and transit countries, including in providing and supporting the deployment of sophisticated technology to understand, monitor, and influence the movement of people across borders. While many migrants rely on technology to connect with others and locate critical information and aid throughout the migration process, technology also enables governments to track migrants long before they reach their destination country. Without proper safeguards and human rights due diligence, the misuse of technology is an impending danger to both migrants and those with intentions to migrate. An upcoming report, co-authored by CSIS’s Human Rights Initiative and the Project on Fragility and Mobility, analyzes the use and exportation of migration management technologies by origin countries, as well as the human rights risks associated with these uses. It then provides recommendations for origin, transit, and destination governments as well as businesses supplying technology for migration management. 

The first panel will feature Badara Ndiaye, Amal El Ouassif, and Caterina Rodelli in a discussion on migration management technology in North Africa, moderated by Erol Yayboke. In the second panel, Amb. William Brownfield, Oscar Chacon, and Ángela Alarcón, moderated by Marti Flacks, will discuss the application of this technology in the Northern Triangle.  

The event is supported by a grant from the Open Society Foundations.