Exploring Socio-Economic Reintegration of Female Returnees from Saudi Arabia in Wukro Town, Tigray, Ethiopia

Abstract

This study explored the multifaceted challenges and opportunities in the socio-economic reintegration of female returnees from Saudi Arabia into Wukro Town, Tigray. The mass deportation of migrant workers has created a crisis, returning thousands of women to a home region devastated by war, compounding the personal trauma of migration with the collective trauma of conflict. Using a qualitative phenomenological approach, this research conducted indepth interviews with 32 female returnees, 3 focus group discussions with 15 female returnees, and 10 key informant interviews with governmental and non-governmental stakeholders. The findings reveal that reintegration is profoundly hindered by a confluence of systemic barriers. Economically, returnees face a collapsed local economy with non-existent job opportunities, inadequate start-up capital, and vocational training programs that are too superficial to provide marketable skills. Socially, they grapple with community misconceptions, stigma, and dwindling family support, leading to isolation and psychological distress. The research concludes that existing reintegration initiatives, while well-intentioned, are fundamentally ill-equipped for a post-conflict reality. They fail to address the dual trauma of exploitative migration under the Kafala system and returning to a war-torn society. Consequently, the vast majority of returnees remain unemployed and economically desperate, making re-migration appear to be a rational choice for survival. This study recommends a paradigm shift from isolated, short-term aid to integrating returnee support into broader, long-term post-conflict reconstruction plans, focusing on sustainable economic opportunities and trauma-informed psychosocial care for the entire community