POLICY BRIEF November 2023 A NO-WIN SITUATION DECONSTRUCTING THE EFFICACY OF EU EXTERNALISATION POLICIES FROM AN AFRICAN PERSPECTIVE ABSTRACT Migration policy discourses within the European Union have favoured a trend towards the so-called externalisation of migration policies, aimed, at least theoretically, to mitigate'irregular migration'. African countries have been a key target of this approach. EU narratives around externalisation are centred on the large and 'dangerous' flows of African migrants arriving by sea, and ignore the stories of the thousands of asylum seekers stuck in border countries in inhumane conditions or of the millions of Africans who prefer to migrate within their continent for trade and work purposes. This policy brief highlights the political, economic and social transformations caused by European externalisation policies within African states. The EU and its member states – using their political and economic leverage – are making deals with African states, urging them to replace their existing free movement protocols with the EU's requirement to stop migration flows. The emphasis on restricting migration to Europe combined with the shortage of legal migratory pathways is contributing to prolonged displacement in border towns and camps where asylum seekers and refugees suffer deprivation and fall prey to smugglers and traffickers. The funds from externalisation deals are being channeled towards the militarisation of borders and are bolstering the capacity of both state and non-state actors – especially in Libya and Tunisia – to perpetrate human rights abuses against African migrants. This policy brief surmises that externalisation perpetuates immobility amongst historically mobile African groups, results in the loss of livelihoods, introduces new forms of displacement, creates a surge in human smuggling and trafficking, and leads to unprecedented human rights abuses. AUTHOR FELICITY OKOTH Coordinator of the International Migration and Ethnic Relations (IMER) research network in Bergen, Norway IN PARTNERSHIP WITH