Growing literature, including those published in this journal, provide important insights into the complex dynamics of immigrants' transnational engagement by comparing different migrant populations residing in the same host society. However, extant research that provides an in-depth investigation of the interplay and dynamics that exist within the same ethnic origin is either sketchy or non-existent. It is therefore imperative to collect as detail and as relevant empirical data digging deeper into the individual nuances and cultural subtleties that exist within a group of migrant populations originating from a single country. Taking the case of Ethiopian immigrants, this research aims to fill a gap by examining the various overarching different migration regimes that shape immigrants' transnational activities including return visits, non-direct family contacts and several features of remittances, including amounts, roles, directionality and intermediaries. A comparison of the two migration trajectories does not only reflect the dynamics of the configuration of migrant societies within Ethiopia but also the specific labour market demands of different countries/regions in terms of the profile of migrants, mainly their skills (low-skilled, unskilled, high-skilled) and genders (male-labour, female-labour) as well as the social transformations associated with migration and remittances. The legal status of migrants during travel, and upon reaching destination and associated mobility and immobility factors are increasingly affecting the migration outcome of these migrants.

This paper examines the dynamics of family relations among Ethiopian transnational families with particular emphasis on how the use of communication media shapes remittance flows and helps maintain family ties. The study is grounded on a survey conducted on 544 households in Gondar, a northern Ethiopian city, which has been an important source of emigrants since the late 1970s, when the country's first wave of emigration occurred as a result of war and political repression.The respondents of the survey are transnational families who maintained strong ties through the use of diverse communication methods such as telephone, email, SMS messaging, and faceto-face visits. The transnational social field is a space increasingly used to advance emotional well-being and to transfer skills and knowledge at family level. The characteristics of transnational families and their ability to access new communication media determines the types of media used which in turn influences the frequency and intensity of family contact. This also explains why Ethiopian emigrants often adopt multiple media links. Migration and remittances were found to significantly improve access to new technologies by migrant households. As the results of this study show, families and communities left behind are not passive recipients of remittances but as proactive agents who co-construct and reconstruct transnational networks. Their role in influencing the monetary and nonmonetary diaspora resource flows is also significant. This paper seeks to make a contribution to the transnational migration literature by examining how origin communities shape and influence the dynamics of these transnational social spaces.

Over the last 50 years, Ethiopia has experienced several socio-economic, environmental, and political crises, leading to significant migration internally and across borders. The IMR Country Report provides a concise overview of Ethiopia's migration history and the present state of international migration trends, which is a crucial migration hub in the Horn of Africa region. The report examines the changing dynamics of migration to, from, and through Ethiopia, including crucial insights from the complex migration journeys of individuals over the years. Migration outflows and drivers have shifted in scale, and the demographic profile of migrants, their countries of origin and destination, has also evolved. Additionally, over the last decade, there has been an increase in the involuntary repatriation of Ethiopian domestic workers from Gulf countries.