African women earn, on average, 11 percent more than African men after migrating to Europe, according to a study published Monday by the Nations Development Program (UNDP).
The report, which interviewed 1,970 migrants from 39 African countries, including Nigeria, Senegal, Mali, Guinea, and Ivory Coast, showed the gender wage gap has resoundingly reversed in Europe.
In Africa, the women surveyed earned 26 percent less than men.
The migrants questioned were living in 13 European nations, including Germany, Spain, Italy, Belgium and France, and had arrived through irregular means. Some 91 percent of them said they had arrived by sea.
The report “Scaling Fences: Voices of Irregular African Migrants to Europe” reveals that 93 percent of those interviewed experienced danger on their journey, but only 2 percent said they would have stayed at home if they had known of the risks.
Getting a job, and the chance of a higher income, was not the only motivation for migrating to Europe. Not all of those surveyed were poor in Africa or had low education levels.
Almost two-thirds had three or more reasons for trying to leave Africa, including educational opportunities in Europe, family reasons and governance/security at home.
UNDP said the report was produced to close gaps in the global evidence base and paint a clearer picture of why irregular migrants move from Africa to Europe.
As well as earning more in Europe, a higher proportion of the women than men interviewed were sending money home.
On average, working respondents were sending back just under one-third of their European income, representing 85 percent of their total incomes in Africa and over 90 percent in real terms. (Source: DW)