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Does relative deprivation induce migration? Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa

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  • Winters, P.
  • Kafle, K.
  • Benfica, R.

Abstract

This paper revisits the decades-old relative deprivation theory of migration. In contrast to the traditional view which portrays absolute income maximization as a driver of migration, we test whether relative deprivation induces migration in the context of sub-Saharan Africa. Taking advantage of the internationally comparable longitudinal data from integrated household and agriculture surveys from Tanzania, Ethiopia, Malawi, Nigeria, and Uganda, we use panel fixed effects to estimate the effects of relative deprivation on migration. We find that a household s migration decision is based not only on its wellbeing status but also on the relative position of the household in the wellbeing distribution of the local community. Results are robust to alternative specifications including pooled data across the five countries and the migration relative deprivation relationship is amplified in rural, agricultural, and male-headed households. Results imply a need to renew the discussion of relative deprivation as a cause of migration. Acknowledgement :

Suggested Citation

  • Winters, P. & Kafle, K. & Benfica, R., 2018. "Does relative deprivation induce migration? Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa," 2018 Conference, July 28-August 2, 2018, Vancouver, British Columbia 276981, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:iaae18:276981
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.276981
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    Cited by:

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    2. Oded Stark & Wiktor Budzinski & Grzegorz Kosiorowski, 2019. "The pure effect of social preferences on regional location choices: The evolving dynamics of convergence to a steady state population distribution," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 59(5), pages 883-909, November.
    3. Oded Stark & Grzegorz Kosiorowski, 2023. "A pure theory of population distribution when preferences are ordinal," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 71(2), pages 317-342, October.
    4. Jordan Chamberlin & Cristina Ramos & Kibrom Abay, 2021. "Do more Vibrant Rural Areas have Lower Rates of Youth Out-Migration? Evidence from Zambia," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 33(4), pages 951-979, August.
    5. Stark, Oded, 2022. "Risk-laden migration as a response to relative deprivation: A hypothesis," Discussion Papers 329580, University of Bonn, Center for Development Research (ZEF).
    6. Kafle, Kashi & Wang, Yuanhang & Kiiza, Barnabas, 2024. "Too poor to migrate? Weather shocks reduce temporary migration among smallscale farmers in Uganda," IAAE 2024 Conference, August 2-7, 2024, New Delhi, India 344270, International Association of Agricultural Economists (IAAE).
    7. Stark, Oded & Byra, Lukasz & Kosiorowski, Grzegorz, 2020. "On the precarious link between the Gini coefficient and the incentive to migrate," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 187(C).
    8. Amany A. El Anshasy & Mrittika Shamsuddin & Marina-Selini Katsaiti, 2023. "Financial Wellbeing and International Migration Intentions: Evidence from Global Surveys," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 24(7), pages 2261-2289, October.
    9. Jordan Chamberlin & T. S. Jayne & Nicholas J. Sitko, 2020. "Rural in‐migration and agricultural development: Evidence from Zambia," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 51(4), pages 491-504, July.
    10. Ebenezer Lemven Wirba & Ernest Ngeh Tingum & Francis Menjo Baye, 2024. "The cost of keeping‐up with the Joneses: Relative deprivation and food spending in Cameroon," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 36(1), pages 415-434, January.
    11. Letta,Marco & Montalbano,Pierluigi & Paolantonio,Adriana, 2024. "Climate Immobility Traps : A Household-Level Test," Policy Research Working Paper Series 10724, The World Bank.
    12. Stark, Oded & LaFave, Daniel, 2024. "On the Role of Social Comparisons in Shaping Migrants’ Remittance Behavior: Theory, and Evidence from China," EconStor Open Access Book Chapters, in: World Scientific Handbook of Global Migration, Volume 2: Global Migration: Alternative Views and Social Comparisons, pages 53-82, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.
    13. Shamsuddin, Mrittika & Katsaiti, Marina Selini & El Anshasy, Amany A., 2022. "Income rank and income concerns: What correlates with international migration intentions?," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 490-505.
    14. Julia Brewer & Ashley Larsen & Frederik Noack, 2024. "The land use consequences of rural to urban migration," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 106(1), pages 177-205, January.
    15. Stark, Oded, 2022. "A unified model of relative deprivation and risk-laden migration," EconStor Open Access Book Chapters, in: Global Labour in Distress, Volume I, pages 67-73, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.
    16. Stark, Holger & Kosiorowski, Grzegorz, 2023. "A Pure Theory of Population Distribution When Preferences Are Ordinal," IZA Discussion Papers 15923, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

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