Franzisca Zanker

Franzisca Zanker is a Research Fellow and research associate at the Arnold Bergstraesser Institute (ABI) in Freiburg, where she heads the research cluster on 'Flight and Migration.' Her expertise spans migration governance, refugee dynamics in sub-Saharan Africa, and the political influence of non-state actors and returnees.

Education

• Doctorate from University of Tübingen (2015)

Research Interests

Her work critically examines migration policy frameworks in African contexts, emphasizing refugee flows, return migration impacts, and transnational advocacy. She investigates intersections between African migration systems and European policy responses, utilizing qualitative fieldwork across sub-Saharan regions to analyze governance challenges and non-state actor interventions.

Current Projects and Grants

Dr. Zanker leads a German Foundation for Peace Research-funded project (2019-2021) comparing migration governance in South Sudan, Uganda, Zimbabwe, and South Africa. She co-founded the 'African Migration, Mobility and Displacement' research network, facilitating collaborative studies on displacement trends and policy innovations across the continent.

Research Cluster

As head of ABI's 'Flight and Migration' cluster, she directs interdisciplinary research on forced displacement, return migration, and policy implementation in African settings, integrating political science perspectives with humanitarian practice.