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Decision to Emigrate Amongst the Youth in Lebanon

Author

Listed:
  • Ghassan Dibeh
  • Ali Fakih
  • Walid Marrouch

Abstract

This paper studies the determinants of youth emigration decisions, which is considered to be one of the main causes of ‘Brain Drain’ in Arab Mediterranean Countries (AMCs). We focus on the case of Lebanon using a unique dataset covering young people aged 15 to 29 from the year 2016. The aim of the paper is to identify the profile of youth’s propensity to emigrate from Lebanon. The empirical results indicate that youth from non-wealthy backgrounds living in smaller dwellings have a higher propensity to emigrate. It is also found that being male and unemployed has a positive incidence on migration. Moreover, university education promotes the willingness to emigrate; while residents of poor regions are more likely to express such willingness. Finally, the paper provides some insights for policymakers.

Suggested Citation

  • Ghassan Dibeh & Ali Fakih & Walid Marrouch, 2017. "Decision to Emigrate Amongst the Youth in Lebanon," CIRANO Working Papers 2017s-04, CIRANO.
  • Handle: RePEc:cir:cirwor:2017s-04
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    Cited by:

    1. Frédéric Docquier & Aysit Tansel & Riccardo Turati, 2017. "Do Emigrants Self-Select Along Cultural Traits? Evidence from the MENA Countries," CESifo Working Paper Series 6777, CESifo.
    2. Raul Ramos, 2019. "Migration aspirations among youth in the Middle East and North Africa region," Journal of Geographical Systems, Springer, vol. 21(4), pages 487-507, December.
    3. Ramos, Raul, 2017. "Migration Aspirations among NEETs in Selected MENA Countries," IZA Discussion Papers 11146, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    4. Frans Willekens & Sabine Zinn & Matthias Leuchter, 2017. "Emigration Rates From Sample Surveys: An Application to Senegal," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 54(6), pages 2159-2179, December.
    5. Dibeh, Ghassan & Fakih, Ali & Marrouch, Walid, 2018. "Labor Market and Institutional Drivers of Youth Irregular Migration: Evidence from the MENA Region," IZA Discussion Papers 11903, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    6. Kashif Iqbal & Yichu Wang & Khurshaid Khurshaid & Muhammad Haroon Shah & Muhammad Sohaib, 2021. "Current Trend and Determinants of Intentions to Migrate: Evidence From China," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(1), pages 21582440211, March.
    7. Milasi Santo, 2020. "What Drives Youth’s Intention to Migrate Abroad? Evidence from International Survey Data," IZA Journal of Development and Migration, Sciendo & Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 11(1), pages 1-30, January.
    8. Amr Abdelwahed & Anne Goujon & Leiwen Jiang, 2020. "The Migration Intentions of Young Egyptians," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-38, November.
    9. Docquier, Frédéric & Tansel, Aysit & Turati, Riccardo, 2017. "Do emigrants self-select along cultural traits? Evidence from the MENA countries," MPRA Paper 82778, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Emigration; youth; Lebanon; probit model;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C25 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Discrete Regression and Qualitative Choice Models; Discrete Regressors; Proportions; Probabilities
    • J60 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - General
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration

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