In migration studies, the focus is usually on global South-global North movements. As South-South migration constitutes a significant part of global movement, an essential part of empirical reality remains understudied. Several scholars have asserted that this negligence in scholarly research is due to a tendency of migration scholars to follow policy developments on migration in global North countries. This paper investigates this assumption by applying a systematic literature review focusing on empirical studies dealing with migration in a global South country: Morocco. A hub for multiple migration flows and balancing demands from both its African and European neighbours, this North African kingdom forms an interesting case study for investigating whether global North policymakers' perspective dictates empirical migration scholars' research agendas. Although the empirical literature on migration to Morocco is rich, the themes and population groups that form the core of empirical scrutiny largely follow questions of political relevance in global North countries.
This working paper is part of the socio-legal research project Living on the Other Side: A Multidisciplinary Analysis of Migration and Family Law in Morocco. The Dutch Research Council (NWO) funded the project through an Innovational Research Incentives Scheme (Vidi-grant). The project is carried out at the Van Vollenhoven Institute for Law & Society, Leiden Law School, Netherlands.