By Patience Gbeze, GNA
Accra, April 18, GNA – The Governing Council of the University of Ghana has promoted the Director of the Centre for Migration Studies (CMS) and renowned scholar, Prof. Mary Boatemaa Setrana, to the rank of Full Professor of Migration and Social Change.
The announcement followed a meeting of the University’s Governing Council held on Thursday, April 16, 2026, and was formally conveyed by the Registrar of the University and Secretary to Council, Mrs. Emelia Agyei-Mensah.
Prof. Setrana, also serves as the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Research Chair on Forced Displacement in Anglophone West Africa.
She is widely recognised for her scholarship and leadership in migration governance, forced displacement, climate-related mobility and migration policy development across Africa.
Over the years, she has built a strong research portfolio examining key dimensions of migration and social change, including return migration, labour migration, diaspora engagement, climate-induced displacement and gendered migration dynamics.
Her work has produced influential insights on migration aspirations, the experiences of “stayers” in migrant-sending communities, and the processes and outcomes of migrant reintegration.
Through her research, Prof. Setrana has contributed significantly to shaping scholarly debates on the migration-development nexus and the evolving dynamics of human mobility within Africa and between Africa and the wider world.
Beyond academia, Prof. Setrana has played a pivotal role in shaping migration policy and governance frameworks in Ghana and across the African continent.
She has contributed to the development of key national and regional policy instruments, including Ghana’s Labour Migration Policy, diaspora engagement strategies and other migration governance initiatives aimed at improving labour mobility management and migrant protection systems.
Her work has also supported policy dialogue and technical capacity building for governments, international organisations and regional bodies working on migration governance.
Through the Centre for Migration Studies at the University of Ghana, she has helped facilitate several national and regional migration policy processes, working closely with stakeholders from government ministries, international development partners and civil society organisations.
Her expertise has been sought in a number of continental initiatives aimed at strengthening migration governance, labour mobility systems and responses to forced displacement.
More recently, Prof. Setrana has led policy-oriented initiatives supported by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and other international partners, including the development of a Community Engagement and Policing (CEP) Strategy, Curriculum and Training Manual for the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS).
The initiative is designed to strengthen border security while placing communities at the centre of migration governance.
She is currently leading a multidisciplinary team of consultants working on the review and update of Ghana’s National Migration Policy, a process intended to strengthen migration governance structures and improve migration management systems in response to emerging migration trends and challenges.
She is also serving as lead facilitator for the revision of Ghana’s National Labour Migration Policy, further reinforcing her role as a key contributor to national migration governance reforms.
Prof. Setrana’s policy expertise has extended beyond Ghana. She previously led the development of Botswana’s National Migration Policy and contributed to the facilitation of Ghana’s Diaspora Policy, while also supporting several migration governance initiatives across Africa.
At the continental level, she has contributed to the work of the African Union (AU) on migration governance.
She developed Gender-Responsive Labour Migration Policy Modules and Guidelines for AU Member States, supported by IOM and led the evaluation of the African Union Migration Policy Framework, funded by the German Development Cooperation (GIZ).
These contributions have helped strengthen migration policy development and implementation across the continent.
In addition to her policy work, Prof. Setrana has led or co-led several major international research projects supported by global partners, including the European Union (EU), United Kingdom Research and Innovation (UKRI), and United Nations agencies.
Among these are the Migration for Development and Equality (MIDEQ) project and the Resilience Against Climate Change Social Transformation Research and Policy Advocacy (REACH-STR) initiative, both of which have generated significant evidence on migration dynamics, climate change and social transformation in Africa.
As Director of the Centre for Migration Studies, Prof. Setrana has been instrumental in positioning the Centre as a leading hub for interdisciplinary migration research, training and policy engagement in Africa.
Under her leadership, the Centre has expanded its research programmes, strengthened graduate training in migration studies and deepened collaboration with global partners such as the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), the European Union and other international research networks.
Through these partnerships, the Centre continues to generate evidence that informs policymaking on forced displacement, climate change, migration governance and human mobility, while also contributing to the training of the next generation of migration scholars and policy practitioners in Africa.
Prof. Setrana also contributes to global academic networks and research governance. She serves on the Scientific Committee of the Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA) and sits on the Advisory Board of the African Research Universities Alliance (ARUA) Centre of Excellence on Migration and Mobility, as well as the Centre on Forced Displacement at Boston University.
Alongside her research and policy engagement, she is deeply committed to mentorship and capacity building, supervising PhD and graduate students and training early-career researchers across Africa.
Through workshops, collaborative research programmes and academic training initiatives, she continues to support efforts to reimagine African migration education, research, policy and practice.
Prof. Setrana’s promotion to the rank of Full Professor is being widely regarded as recognition of her sustained contributions to scholarship, mentorship, international research partnerships and evidence-based policy development in the field of migration studies.
The University and Centre for Migration Studies have congratulated her on the academic milestone, describing the promotion as evidence of her academic excellence, visionary leadership and global impact on migration research and policy engagement.
GNA
Edited by Benjamin Mensah