Migration of Cameroonian women: a way out of unequal gender opportunities?

The aim of our paper is to test whether perceptions of unequal opportunities in Cameroon is likely to influence women's intention to migrate. In fact, migratory intentions present the advantage rather than actual migration to be a major determinant of the supply side of international migration flows . To enrich the interpretations, we adopt a mixed approach based on a quantitative analysis using secondary data from the Afrobarometer database (2021) on migration intentions/preparations and a qualitative analysis of 30 semi-structured interviews with women on their intentions and capacities to migrate. Following Ruyssens et al. (2018), we use a sample selection model in which migration intentions and preparations are jointly estimated using a Heckman probit approach. Our paper contributes to this flow of literature on migratory aspirations and capacities by empirically analysing the influence of perceived inequalities of opportunities on Cameroonian women's migration intentions and subsequent migration behaviour. The Afrobarometer database also allows us to better understand how these migration intentions translate into concrete plans and to explore the extent to which perceived inequalities of opportunities, alongside traditional personal characteristics, may either favour or hinder the migration behaviour of Cameroonian women. The qualitative approach will allow us not only to deepen our results but also to explore non-quantifiable factors.