Local Faith Actors and the Migration– Development Nexus: A Literature Review

Abstract

Abstract Since the turn of the millennium, the migration–development nexus has gained renewed attention within international organisations’ policies and academic debates. However, in these debates, the roles played by faith-based actors in general, and local faith actors (lfas) in particular, have so far only been marginally addressed. This fails to reflect the growing literature and practice examples of lfas’ engagements with both sustainable development and migration. This article focuses on the key debates around the migration–development nexus to which lfas’ engagements with development and with migration are particularly relevant. The central part of the article outlines existing research and policy documents on lfas, migration and development that directly speak to these debates. The last section summarises key points and directions to further explore the intersections among these areas of academic research and policymaking. These include research gaps around the role of lfas in the protection of children on the move, in advocating for the rights of migrants, and in addressing climate-related displacements. Overall, this literature review demonstrates that there is a need for more nuanced understanding of the migration–development nexus and of the many ways in which the two phenomena are interlinked.