Causes and consequences of Rural-Urban Labour Migration in Ethiopia: The Case of Arba Minch Town
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Date
1997-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
The phenomenon of rural to urban migration more as an
incidence of rural pushed ' type and comparatively much less
of urban ' pulled' types has became a ' problematic f act or
leading to unhealthy imbalances in population distribution,
locally, regionally and nationally, and affecting the
development of both rural and urban areas, in some developing
countries in particular.
in-migrants of Arba Minch
As such, the present study of the
is aimed to f ind out t he major
causes and the consequences of the flow of people from rural
areas in particular, with a view t o provide a researched frame
for policy planning in the area.
In order to find out the problems, 725 household heads
were selected randomly from seven sample kebeles of the t own.
structured interview questionnaires were prepared. The
questionnaires
incorporating
are multi- dimensional
demographic, socio-economic,
occupational conditions of the respondents.
in structure,
culture and
However, the
entire part of the questionnaire i s mainly centered around the
causes and consequences of migration to Arba Minch.
/ There are many causes for the movement of people from
rural areas to towns. Among them, the findings in relation t o
Arba Minch indicate that, the search for r~~~ner~ive income
in the town, unemploymentratr' and the per capita land shortage
in some regions or woredas are the most significant and
explici t 'pushing' factors of migrants from rural .ar-eas.
ยท , .
'/ Thus, the study finds tha t economic differentials as evidenced
by the urban centres are the necessary conditions but not by
themselves sufficient to 'pull'; which the rate of migration
is determined mainly by economic factors, the incidence of
migration depends on the ' push ' factors of the rural ' areas. ~
This can be generalized that, the income differential, actual
or perceived between rural and urban areas is the core of the
reasons for migration. other factors such as ' search for
better educational and health facilities or urban amenities'
seem to be less explicit or sharper and at least less
'activating' factors. However, to lead an urban life is a
great 'wish' , especially for some youths, but they are hardly
educated or skilled for taking up real 'urban' jobs or
invertible resources to start their own. The life opportunity
goals therefore may not be attained.
~ The consequences of migration on both areas of departure
and destination are also points of focus in this regard.
Though, detail assessment of the background of the rural areas
is not taken into account , it is found that as a whole ,
mi gration does not relieve the rural areas of ' populaion '
burden; r ather, they impinge several negaj!'tive consequences on
the villages/ families. The relatives and famil i es the young
migrants leave such as women folk, children and the aged, are
less efficient. Hence, the out-flow of productive age group
from rural agricultural sector has a negative effect on
production.
Therefore, the remedies to mitigate the problem lie on
the launching of integrated rural development policy. ,
Description
Keywords
Labour Migration in Ethiopia