Integration in Italy among selected migrant communities : does country of origin matter?

Abstract

The present chapter focuses on integration levels and determinants of Moroccan and Ukrainian migrants in Italy. Equal attention is paid to destination and origin factors, which may facilitate or constrain integration outcomes in three dimensions: the labour market, education and access to citizenship. The chapter finds evidence that integration levels, determinants and specifically, the roles of origin factors vary widely across dimensions. In the labour market, both Moroccan and Ukrainian migrants living in Italy show high levels of integration. These extremely positive performances seem due less to origin than to destination factors – namely Italy’s labour market specificities and migration history. In addition, the role played by NGOs appears relevant to helping migrants find employment – not good employment or well-remunerated employment but just employment. In the education dimension, things differ. At an international level, Ukrainians living in Italy show good levels of integration, once controlled for natives’ performance. Thus origin determinants – in terms of conditions at home – seem to prevail here. Not surprisingly, the degree of integration in the 'access to citizenship' dimension is connected to the degree of openness/restrictiveness of host citizenship laws and, accordingly, to the length of presence in the country. Our results confirm that Italy is still one of the countries where getting citizenship is one of the main constraints for migrants in both recent communities (Ukrainians) and well-established ones (Moroccans).