ABSTRACT

Although part of the Turkish city Istanbul belongs, geologically speaking, to the European continent, it is located outside the boundaries of the European Union (EU). Because of its proximity to the EU, Istanbul is an important crossroad for (irregular) migrants who hope to reach the EU. Since the early 1990s, the city has received many migrants from the former Soviet Union, the Middle East and East Asia (Içduygu and Toktas 2002; Içduygu and Yükseker 2008; Akinbingöl 2003; Daniş 2006; Van Liempt 2007). Nowadays, more and more sub-Saharan Africans are moving into this region. While the exact number remains highly uncertain, 1 Istanbul is host to a considerable number of groups of migrants from the Horn of Africa, as well as an increasing number of West and Central Africans, including Nigerians, Sierra Leones, Ghanaians, Congolese and Senegalese. Certainly, not all of these sub-Saharan African migrants are ‘in transit’ in Istanbul trying to make their way into the EU. On the contrary, many Africans hope for a ‘settled life’ in Istanbul. Others are studying at the universities whilst still others are commuting as transnational traders between Turkey and their countries of origin. Nevertheless, it is safe to assume that sub-Saharan Africans are increasingly using Istanbul as a gateway to the EU (Brewer and Yükseker 2006; Ozdil 2008; Schapendonk 2011).