Migration

Definitions

Forced migration

Rural-Urban migration

Economic migration

Chain migration

Diaspora

Members of a country's citizens living in a different country

When people move because of their work, usually to find a better paid job or a promotion.

When people have to migrate, normally because their life is in danger e.g. war or natural disaster.

The movement from the countryside into cities.

The process by migrants from one town following migrants from the same town to a particular city or neighbourhood.

Forced migration

Voluntary migration

Causes

  • Natural disasters like flooding, earthquakes or volcanoes
  • Outbreaks of disease
  • War
  • Political persecution
  • Drought and famine

Causes

  • Retirement
  • Education
  • Work
  • Medical care
  • More relaxed lifestyle in foreign country

Push factors

Pull factors

something that makes you want to leave a location.

  • No job or a poorly paid job
  • Food and water shortages
  • Poor education and medical care
  • Crime or conflict

Something that attracts you to a new location.

  • Prospect of a better job
  • Lower crime rates and peace
  • Prospect of better education for them or their children
  • Availability of food and water
  • Greater political freedoms
  • Greater gender equality

Lee's Push-Pull Theory

Source Country

Host Country

Advantages

Disadvantages

Advantages

Disadvantages

  • A reduction in unemployment
  • Remittances
  • Migrants may return home with new skills
  • Increased political ties with migrants host country
  • Reduced pressure on education and healthcare system
  • Reduction in births rates and total fertility rate as many migrants are in the reproductive age range
  • Brain drain
  • A shortage of workers
  • An increase in the dependency ratio as economically active migrate
  • Separation of families
  • Creates dependency on remittances
  • Brain gain
  • As well as trained migrants there will be as source of cheap migrants to fill manual jobs.
  • increased cultural diversity
  • Growth of local market with increase of population
  • If migrants are legal, then an increase in tax revenues for the government
  • increase in racial tension
  • greater pollution and overcrowding
  • rise in unemployment
  • increase pressure on services
  • Growth of black market and informal economy if migrants are illegally present

Remittances

Money sent home from family members or friends living an earning money in a different location, normally a foreign country.

Casestudy: Ecuador

Refugees

Someone who has been forced to leave their home and their country.

IDPs

This stands for internally displaced person and it is someone who has been forced to leave their home and move somewhere else within their country.

Asylum Seekers

A person who seeks to be granted refugee status

Problems that Refugees/IDPs can face


  • Starvation and/or Dehydration
  • Exposure
  • Disease
  • Language Barriers
  • Racial Tensions
  • Unemployment or Underemployment
  • Violence
  • Deportation
  • Exploitation

Urbanisation

The increase in the proportion of people living in urban areas. Urbanisation normally takes place because of rapid rural-urban migration.