SEMINAR: Informal Governance from Below: Hybrid Authority,  Legitimation, and Migration

DATE: 16 September 2026

TIME: 12:30 – 13:30 (GMT+2)

VENUE: ACMS Seminar Room (2163), Solomon Mahlangu House (2nd floor), East Campus, Wits University (directions) and ONLINE (Meeting ID: 96111762177. Password: @jnG99yKA4)

Dr. Balkissa Daouda Diallo (Postdoctoral Fellow, African Centre for Migration & Society) will present a hybrid seminar exploring how international migration politics shape regional and domestic mobility governance, informal governance, and the precarity of movement in Africa.

Drawing on her research on African migrations and governance, this seminar examines the tension between constructed borders and the lived realities of those navigating them. It asks: How do borders, both formal and informal, shape the lives of migrants? And what does hybrid authority mean for governance, belonging, and survival?

Abstract: This paper explores the tension between constructed borders and the lived realities of those navigating them in Africa. Drawing on research on African migrations and governance, it examines how international migration politics shape regional and domestic mobility governance, informal governance, and the precarity of movement. The paper argues that borders are not merely physical lines but are produced and reproduced through legal, political, and social processes that shape migrants’ lives.

Bio: Dr. Balkissa Daouda Diallo is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the African Centre for Migration & Society (ACMS). Her research focuses on African migrations and governance, exploring how international migration politics influence regional and domestic mobility governance, informal governance, and the precarity of movement. She holds a PhD in Global Governance and Human Security from the University of Massachusetts Boston, an MA in International Development, and an MSc in Environmental Studies from Ohio University. She is a Fulbright alumna and a member of the African Studies Association.