MIGRATION

AS level Geography

Contents

• Migration as a Component of Population

• Internal Migration

• International Migration

MIGRATION AND

POPULATION CHANGES

PART 1

Definition of termsMigration: The movement of people across a specified

boundary, national or international, to establish a new

place of residence. The UN defines permanent as

lasting more than 1 year

The Core: A region of concentrated economic

development with advanced systems of infrastructure,

resulting in high average income and relatively low

unemployment

The Periphery: A region of low or declining economic

development characterized by low income and relatively

low unemployment

Definition of termsMacro level: Large scale

Meso level: Intermediate scale

Micro level: Small Scale

Chain Migration: When one or a small number of

pioneering migrants have led the way in rural urban

migrations, and other in the same rural communities

follow

Step Migration: A series of shorter, less extreme

migrations from a person’s place of origin to final

destination – such as moving from a farm to a village

and finally to a city

Definition of terms

Stepped migration: When a rural migrant initially /heads for a

familiar small town and then after a period of time moves on

to a larger urban settlement. Over the years, migrants may

take several steps up the urban hierarchy

Counterurbanisation: The process of population de-

centralization where an increasing number of population

move from large urban areas to rural areas or smaller urban

settlements

Voluntary migration: A migration of choice where the

individual/ household has a free choice about whether to

move or not

Forced migration: A migration without a choice when the

individual/ household has little or no choice but to move.

Definition of terms

Someone who has been forced to leave home and

country because of a well-founded fear of persecution on

account of race, religion, social group or political opinion.

Someone who has been forced to leave his/her home for

reasons similar to a refugee but who remains in the

same country.

Immigration: Movement of people into a country

Emigration: movement of people out of a country

In-migration: Movement of people into a region

Out-migration: Movement of people out of a region

Definition of terms

• Diaspora: The dispersal of people from

their original homeland

• Multiplier effect: Where an increase in the

money supply in a region sets off an

upward spiral of development as this

money circulates the economy

Models of Migration

1. E.S. Lee’s Origin-Obstacles-Intervention model

2. Akin Mobugunje’s System Approach

3. Todaro’s Cost-Benefit Model

4. Stark-Todaro’s New Economics of Migration

5. Marxist/ Structuralist Theory

6. Ravenstein’s law

7. Structuration theory

8. Gender Analysis

Lee’s Model

• Lee’s Model introduces the idea of push-

pull factor in migration

• Decision is often made as an individual

• Push and Pull factors working to

encourage migration

• With intervening obstacles playing a part

Todaro’s Cost-effective

approach• Migrants’ perception are not

entirely skewed

• They know that initial life in urban

area won’t be entirely positive

• Migrants weigh up the

possibilities of achieving a better

life in the areas of origins to the

areas of destinations

• There are more opportunities in

destinations

Stark’s New Economics of

Migration• An extension of Todaro’s model

• Decision is also by household

• A form of economic diversification

• A cost/reward sharing

• Risk spreading – as a response to rural deprivation

Marxist Theory

• A transition to

capitalism

• Market force is the

main factor

• The only option of

alienation from the

land

• Emphasizes the

control market force

has over migrants

Structuration Theory

• Incorporate personal motives and

structural forces of economy, society and

culture

• Rules designed to regulate can also create

forces that lead to more opportunity

Gender Roles

• Patriarchal society may

lead to men moving more

than women

• Emancipation of women

leads to higher mobility of

the gender

• Higher mobility – whole

movement of household

Ravenstein’s Law

1. The ides of distance decay

2. There are always counter-current

3. Dispersion is inverse of absorption

4. Most migration are two ways

5. Longer distance migration will be movement

toward urban areas

6. Most migrants are rural

7. Female migrants migrate more in shorter distance.

Male migrants migrate more in longer distances

Constraints/ Obstacles/ Barriers

• Legal obstacles e.g. hukou system

• Obstacles: Distance/ Cost

• Migrants may not have enough money to

move out

• Cost for closing up (may be higher in

MEDCs)

• Actual Cost of transport

• Costs of opening up – is also high

Cost for closing up

• Vary according to the

value of the estate

• LEDCs: monetary value

small – personal value

high

• MEDCs: Real estates

agents, legal fees,

possessions

Travelling Cost

• Depends on the mode of transport

• Time taken / distance travelled

• Costs for transporting possession

• Danger associated with journey

• Ethnic tension/ discrimination

• Thieves/ Smugglers

• Natural obstcles

Opening Up cost

• Usually quite high especially in urban area

• To find an area housing

• Deal with legal fees

• Buy furniture

• Unless: lives in informal housing/ share

with relatives

Collecting Data in Migration

• Population censuses

• Migrants registers

• Specific surveys

• Airports etc.

INTERNAL MIGRATION

PART 2

Distance, Direction, Pattern

• Distance may have filtering effects on

migration – Distance Decay

• Direction: Migration’s direction usually

follows the push-pull factor – usually by

rural-urban movement or periphery to core

movements

• Rural-rural migration is equally important

Distance in migration

• Intra-national (within a country)

• Local

• Intra-district/ inter-district (Within district/

between districts)

• Intra-provincial/ Inter-provincial (Within a

province/ between provinces)

• Intra-regional/ Inter regional (Within

regions/ between regions)

Distance

• Distance can differentiate types of movements/

types of movers

• Are they: wealthy/ poor

• LEDCs/ MEDCs

• Ethnicity

• Gender

• Family

• Permanent movement or Temporary

movement

Directions

• Most prevalent: Periphery – core / Rural-

urban

• From culturally traditional – areas of rapid

changes

Directions

• Larger difference in magnitude between

socio-economic (Socio-economic

disparities) = larger scale of rural urban

movement in LEDCs

• Rural-rural movement may also be

common

The Causes of Migration

• Reasons for Rural – urban movement

• Political resettling

Rural-urban movement causes

• Influence by push/pull factors

• PUSH FACTORS:

Land reforms not complete

Inheritance law – causes the land to be

divided over and over again

Low agricultural output

Natural disasters

Rural-urban movement causes

• PUSH FACTORS:

Mechanization – lower farm employment –

rural depopulation – rural service decline

Underemployment

Overpopulation

Activities of governments

Activities of transnational companies

Rural-urban movement causes

• PULL FACTORS: based on the

perception?

Better housing

Employment

Proximity to amenities/ services

Improved lifestyle

Reliable source of food

Division of causes into 3 scales

• Each scale of motives affect migrants at

different levels

• Macro scale: At a national level

• Meso level: At a regional/ village level

• Micro level: At a family/ personal level

Macro-level

• Highlights socio-economic disparity

• Focuses on core-periphery concept

• Akin of the Marxist/ Structuralist concept

• Migrants move in response to market

forces and the need for employment.

Macro-level

• In LEDCs – had its start in the colonial era

– most people are forced to move to cities

as workers or by taxation laws

• LEDCs development – urbanization/

industrialization – leads to migrants

movement by the forces of capitalism

• Disproportionate investment – more in

capital cities

Meso Level

• More detailed analysis of origin, obstacles,

destinations

• Follows more closely E.S. Lee’s model of

migration

• Todaro's/ Stark's model begin to play a

part

• Individual perception highlighted

• Economic reasons are still very dominant

The Micro-level

• Specific circumstances of individual

families

• Conflicts within family?

• Urban relatives/ contact?

• Very important when long distance

involved

The Micro-level

• Level of income

• Size of land holding

• Size of household

• Stage in Life Cycle

• Level of Education

• Cohesiveness in family unit

Impacts

• Socio-economic Impacts

• Political Impacts

• Demographic Impacts

• Environmental Impacts

Socio-Economic

• Remittances has been seen as a benefit to

the area of origin

• Also seen as an out-flow of money from

urban areas

Socio-Economic

• The flow of money/ support is not unilateral

1. Remittance sent home to rural areas vs. money sent

to urban areas as start-up cost/ money for

education

2. Migrants move in for education vs. Return of

educated migrants

3. Lost of workforce vs. Return of experienced, skilled

workforce

4. Young villagers vs. return flow of experienced

workers

Socio-Economic

• Newly developed opportunities tend to

stimulate new migrants

• However, in some extreme LEDCs –

migrants may be illiterate, unskilled and

uninformed of the opportunities

• Development in rural areas – tend to result

in even more out-migration

Socio-Economic

• Rural migrants – young, economically

active workforce

• May provide great workforce

• May also create strains on the resources

Socio-Economic

• Impacts on the areas of origins

1. May reduce unemployment/

underemployment

2. Remittances return

3. Migrants return with skills

4. Promotes development in rural regions

5. Leads to migration becoming unnecessary

6. Patriarchal society reversed?

Socio-Economic

• Impacts on the areas of origins

1. Lost of agricultural workforce

2. Lost of parents to children

3. Higher need for child labor

4. Can have an effect in widening the

economic gaps – remittances are unequal

5. Rural depopulation – less market force

Political Impact

• Depopulation = lower

political

representation

• Increases in migrants

– higher political

influenced

• Changes in the ethnic

composition e.g. Han

Chinese migration

into Tibet

Environmental Impact

• Further urbanization in developing

countries

• Leads to deforestation

• Changes in the ecology

• Pressure on land – resources constraints

Demographic Impact

• Impacts on age structure/ gender

composition

• Pyramids of rural areas: Losses of young

economically active adult

• Pyramids of urban areas: More young,

economically active adults

• Usually more men moving than woman

Stepped Migration

• Occurs – due to the idea of distance decay

– not wanting to leave families, culture,

ethnicity – also could be due to lack of

capital for movements, lack of skills/

connections

• Soon – migrants develop skills,

connections, confidence and financial

capability

Stepped migration

villageMarket

TownRegional

city

National

Conurbation/

Primate city

Intra-Urban Movement• Movement within cities – usually in the form of

family life cycle

• Available housing stocks are important

determining factors

• There are contrasts between the spatial life

cycle of rich and poor

• Life cycle/ incomes influence directions, distance

and patterns

• ALSO – the government’s planning of the

housing areas/ associated organization

Intra urban movement• Wealthy = high mobility

• Hence, the more well-off sector of the population tend to

have higher mobility

• For the lower income groups – choices are more

restricted

• In MEDCs lower income groups may be concentrated in

inner urban areas

Movement within urban areas are response to

employment, growth of cities, finding better environment,

economic changes etc.

Family Life Cycle

Counter-Urbanization

• Caused by the more appealing non-urban

lifestyles

• Increasing mobility of urbanites: higher

incomes

• Improvement in transport network

• Introduction of commuter communities in

rural-urban fringes

Period explanation

• Role of economic/ demographic situations

in 1970 when Counter urbanization first

appeared

• Energy crisis, economic recession, sharp

growth in retirees, post war baby booms

• Emphasis on urban push factors

• Weaken metropolitan growth

• See Counter urbanization as temporary

Regional Restructuring

• New organization of production

• Increase importance of service industries

• Spatial divisions of labor change

• Spread of activities toward rural peripheries

De-concentration

• Less technological/ institutional barriers

now

• Reducing constraints on infrastructures/

technologies in rural areas

• Hence many companies/ households felt

free to leave urban areas

• The improvement have to also be made

accessible by the other 2 reasons

INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION

PART 3

Changes to International

Migration

• Growth of labor migration/ student migration

due to higher mobility – migrations are now

more temporary, circular

• Spatial impacts have increased with the

scale

• Gender roles – increase female migrants

• Movement is from the weaker to the stronger

economy

Changes to International

Migration

• Controls have been

enforced to prevent

illegal immigrations/

security purposes

e.g. after 911

• Globalization –

increases awareness

of opportunities

Refugees situations

• Late 20th to early 21s Century

• In Africa and Asia – violent conflicts have

broken out

• Lead population movement in large scale

• Internal displacement and refugees have

both become huge issues

• In 2015, refugee situation was worse than

ever

Refugees situations - War

• Increase in weapons and arms availability

• New forms of warfare has impacts that

affect even the civilians

• Light weapons/ land mines at low price –

allow whole population to be armed

• Mass eviction/ expulsion in the form of

ethnic cleansings e.g. in Rwanda

Refugees situations

• UNHCR (United Nation High Commission

for Refugees)

• Guarantees security for refugees and

asylum seekers

• Fund more people forced to uproot from

their home – to live nomadic lifestyles

WAR

Refugees situations

• Natural disasters

• Droughts, floods, volcanic eruptions

• Soil degradation/ Desertification

• Water constraint – e.g. Aral sea

• Almost all was the cause of human actions

• LEDCs most heavily affected – no capital

for prevention

Refugees situations

• Large infrastructure projects may also

displace large number of people

• The Xayaburi dam in Mekong

• The Aswan high dam in Egypt

Voluntary migration

• Large number of voluntary international

migrations nowadays are for economic

reasons

• Tends to be movement from LEDCs to

MEDCs

• There are also those from MEDCs to

LEDCs – may be for lower living cost

Voluntary migration

• Most recent movements – coinciding with

global economic recessions are into the

OECDs (Organization of economic

cooperation and development)

Voluntary migration

• Factors influencing movements

• The extent of economic opportunities

• Presence of family members/ those of the

same ethnic origin

• Point of entry

Socio-Economic

• Socio-economic status of migrants in

OECDs countries

1. Unemployed compared with nationals/

locals

2. Dirty, dangerous, difficult/dull works

3. Over represented in some industries

Industries for foreign migrants in

OECD• Construction workers

• Hospitality/ hotel

• Catering

• Household services

Socio-Economic

• Value of remittances are very important

• Philippines – highest remittance in the

world

• Some will argue it to be the most essential

source of income

• ‘Globalization bottom up’

• Helps alleviate poverty

• Increases investment/ businesses

• Reduces impact of global recession

Socio-Economic

• Remittances – multiplier effect in donor

countries

• Although: Brain drain from the donor

countries – are they well compensated by

remittances

Socio-Economic

• Assimilation in receiving

countries: racial tension,

differences in language,

culture

• Donor countries: Lost of

dynamic population,

returned migrants have

ideas that may clash

with traditional values

Cultural

• Cultural exchange/ globalization

• Multi-cultural society

• Cultural hybrid

• Diaspora population forming ethnic areas

in receiving countries

• Once again, lost of traditional can be an

issue

• Changes in ethnicity/ languages

Political

• Migrants have political opinions – tend to be

more to the left wing

• Movement of migrants will also influence the

political importance of areas

• When immigrant population reaches a certain

size – they may form their own real political

union – a representation

• Political tension between donor/ receiving

nations

• Pro-migration agenda of developing nation

Environmental

• May argue that environmental problems

(ecological footprints) are increased by

movement of migration fro the receiving

countries

• Increase in resource constraints