DDF Fellowship Summary
- DDF Project Title
Facilitation of Regular Migration Pathways
- DDF Fellow Reference Number
- DDF60
- Fellow's Diaspora Country
Germany
- Partner in The Gambia
Gambia-European Centre for Jobs
- Geographical Coverage
- Rural & Urban
- Initial Project Period
- March 2026 – June 2026
- Main Project Results
To be updated
Challenges and Opportunities
The project faced high demand for regular migration to Germany, creating operational pressure with only three staff members struggling to respond to enquiries and provide guidance. Limited resources constrained expansion, and full legal registration as an Au Pair agency remained pending due to documentation and compliance requirements, though a German lawyer was contracted and significant preparatory steps were completed.
Despite this, the assignment showed that safe, regular and legal migration pathways are achievable, helping change perceptions that irregular migration is the only route to Europe. Over 20 Gambians have already travelled to Germany through legal pathways. Additional staff, funding and stronger partnerships could expand the programme’s reach, with future opportunities including other EU countries, teacher exchanges with Germany, and stronger links with the Goethe-Institut in Dakar.
Yahya Sonko
DDF60
About The Project
The project, “Regular Labour Migration to Germany” (DDF60), was implemented by Diaspora Fellow Mr. Yahya Sonko under the Diaspora Development Fund (DDF), funded by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and managed by GK Partners (GKP). The assignment focused on the Labour Migration and Skills Development sector.
The project had three key outputs:
- Enhance the structure for the regular labour migration scheme to Germany.
- Mentor and support potential regular circular labour migrants to Germany.
- Capacity development of German language schools in The Gambia.
Key activities included initiating the registration of the Gambia European Center as an Au Pair agency in Germany, engaging a German lawyer for legal guidance, developing a professional website for the Gambia European Center for Jobs, Migration and Development Agency, recruiting and mentoring candidates for Au Pair, Ausbildung and FSJ programmes, and delivering capacity-building training for German-language schools across The Gambia.
DDF Results and Impact
The project reached over 65 Gambian youths aged 18 to 35 with counselling on regular migration to Germany, and successfully recruited 25 candidates, 15 for AU Pair, 6 for Ausbildung and 4 for FSJ (18 female, 7 male), who are now undertaking German-language courses. Two candidates secured host families and completed visa interviews in Dakar, with one already receiving her visa and scheduled to travel on 11 September 2026. A professional website for the Gambia European Center was completed and is set to launch before the end of September 2026, and a capacity-building training was delivered for German-language schools across The Gambia, with two trainings held in total on 11 May and 6 June 2026. The project mobilised 2,592 staff hours and raised GMD 500,000 in registration fees.
Qualitatively, the initiative strengthened the capacity of German-language schools, established collaborations with Fair Pair in Heidelberg, Multikultura and a German lawyer, and demonstrated that regular, legal migration is a viable alternative to irregular migration, helping change perceptions among Gambian youth. It also laid the groundwork for future expansion, including connecting Gambian German-language teachers with qualified teachers in Germany and building stronger partnerships across Germany and other EU countries. While full legal registration as an Au Pair agency remains pending, significant preparatory steps are complete, and full registration is expected before the end of 2026.
