Asian Ethnic Enclaves in Catalonia and the weight of social capital: a preliminary evaluation. INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR. Personal networks in times of economic hardship and political discontent" Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. 11 th 13 th July 2012
Two research projects on entrepreneurship and Asian communities in Catalonia. Prospective comparative exercise: highlighting some qualitative issues on empirical data. ITINERE. Profiles of Ethnic Entrepreneurship. (2010-2012). Indian communities in Lloret de Mar (Coast) Ethnographic data, network analysis, Position Generator "Socio-economic inequalities and cultural differences in the health sector in areas of priority action in Catalonia. (2006-2008) Pakistani communities settled in the city centre, Barcelona.. Ethnographic data, Position generators, interviews.
From 0.5% in 1985 to 12% in 2011 1. Romania (809.409) 2. Morocco (766.187) 3. Ecuador (478.894) India (0.50%) Pakistan (1.5%) * * Dramatic increase of 800% in 10 years. >20% unemployment rate
Enclave: a particular case of ethnic economy (Light, 2006) Alternative to the mainstream labor market (Kim, 2003: 805). Where exists use of ethnic and economic resources as a comparative advantage. Providing protection, reproduction of cultural models & providing information flows, manpower, alliances, etc. : social capital. Here I am not focusing on weak & strong ties analysis DEFINITION permanent concentration in a particular spatial place of a variety of ethnic enterprises with a significant presence of co-ethnic workers in a specialized economic sector (Portes, 1981:290-91).
Pakistani represent 1.22% of foreign population: 69% in Catalonia and 79% in Barcelona 4.472 Pakistani population just in Raval 244 Pakistani shops, double than in 2001 (Guell, 2012) Counter-intuitive data in times of crisis: Increasing number of Pakistanis Increasing number of businesses (Cheaper renting) 70% basic education level Punjabis (rural background) and Sindh Average age: 30 years old (12 years younger than the Spanish average) 1154 men/ 100 women More than 25 Pakistani formal associations: religious, unions, women, etc. (pesonal communication)
Groceries and small supermarkets. Phone shops Hairdressers Restaurants and fast foods. Internet shops Travel agencies Bakeries Butchers (halal) (Source: Güell, 2011)
Sample of 50 people: 9 employees and 41 employers 7 years of residence as average (Max. 21 / Min,. 3 months) Newcomers reaching straight to BCN (80%) Before coming from other places with residence between 1 and 3 years : France, Romania, Switzerland, Dubai, London, Malta, Italy, Germany. Spain becomes first migratory destiny for newcomers during the crisis (!). Lower degree of transnationality? Very diverse, non-skilled, professional background: Tailors, taxi driver, shopkeeper, receptionist, salesman, cook, electrician, factory worker, dishwasher, etc. (See later comments on Social capital and the relationship with other professions)
Around 2000 Indians: Sindhi, Sikh and Punjabis in the coastal line. Most came from Barcelona, looking for new economic opportunities Progressive control of the touristic retailer market: liqueur stores, shoes shops, and particularly, the souvenir sector. Displacement of previous local ethnic economies : Moroccan, Pakistani, locals
Spatial concentration Sector specialization + + - Touristic areas and city center - Souvenir sector Ethnic co-workers - Internal ethnic differentiation - Different level of social capital + Ethnic Owners -Early settlers -Spanish Nationality -Owners of more than 1 shop Ethnic clients - Social capital +/- + OWNERS WORKERS + + Solidarity + - Informal credits + - Upward mobility and integration +/- + Transnationalism +? Information flow
Spatial concentration # Type Origin Sector 1 Hotel International 2 Souvenirs Indian 3 Souvenirs Indian 4 Donner Kebab Indian 5 Hairdresser Indian 6 Souvenirs Indian 7 Souvenirs Indian 8 Souvenirs Indian 9 Tattoos & Piercings Local 10 Souvenirs Local 11-20 Souvenirs Indian 21 Restaurant Local 22-26 Souvenirs Indian 27 Hotel International
Workers: Cyan: CO-ETHNICS Blue: Spanish of Indian origin Employer Owner: bussiness help Most are llocals Spanish
Greater expansive orientation than Pakistanis More multi-owners and more specialized. Greater relevance to education Higher interaction with professionals from education and other professionals fields related with their businesses Less transnational experience before reaching Spain. Longer experience in the same sector. Owners do register longer residence time in Spain Less sexual segregation. Few associations of cultural character Greater social integration of entrepreneurs same scarce integration of workers idiom limitations. No real transnational links (??): Small contact with homeland in the case of owners. Circular migration in the case of workers. (seasonal work)
There are not many differences between Indian and Pakistani ethnic economies: High rate of entrepreneurship and self-employment The relevance of status They use similar ethnic and economic resources High degree of self-exploitation and family enterprises Wide pool of cheap workers Positive correlation between time and economic success Reproduction of social and cultural referents Informal credit systems kommiti in the Pakistani case and informal credit in the Indian case. Major differences between workers and owners. Owners: well integrated, up-ward mobility, multi-owners, and high degree of local embeddedness. Slight differences relating religious beliefs, food and habits.
Under-representation of ethnic capital (social prestige) the role of Imam, association leaders, etc. Do you know any domestic worker? (e.g. Philippines) Do you know any banker? (e.g., Kommiti, informal credit systems ) Do you know any street vendor? ( a mater of prestige, risk, suspicion ) Relationship with professionals related to their job and migratory situation: lawyers, travel agents, etc. No much relationship with high qualified professions (e.g., architects), except designer of computer systems Higher relationship with public administrators in Pakistan than in Spain public administrators, politicians, etc. Ethnic laden relationships (e.g. barber, butcher) and caste relationships Under-representation of women and elder migratory context. Are PG really standardized?