Friday, 28 June 2024

THEME 1.2 MIGRATION

•Explain and give reasons for population migration: Internal
movements such as rural-urban migration, as well as
international migrations, both voluntary and involuntary.
• Demonstrate an understanding of the impacts of migration:
Positive and negative impacts on the destination and origin of
the migrants, and on the migrants themselves.
What is migration?
Migration is the movement of people from one place to another, to
settle in a new location. Migration can be voluntary or involuntary
and can occur for a variety of different reasons, including
economic, environmental and social issues.

Reasons for migration: push and pull factors

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Push factors are the reasons people leave a country. Pull factors are
the reason they move to a particular country. There are three major
push and pull factors.
Social and political factors
Persecution because of one's ethnicity, religion, race, politics or
culture can push people to leave their country. A major factor is
war, conflict, government persecution or there being a significant
risk of them. Those fleeing armed conflict, human rights
violations or persecution are more likely to be humanitarian
refugees. This will affect where they settle as some countries have
more liberal approaches to humanitarian migrants than others. In
the first instance, these people are likely to move to the nearest
safe country that accepts asylum seekers. The backbone of
international humanitarian law is the Geneva Conventions, which
regulate the conduct of armed conflict and seek to limit its effects.
Demographic and economic causes
Demographic change determines how people move and migrate. A
growing or shrinking, aging or youthful population has an impact
on economic growth and employment opportunities in the
countries of origin or migration policies in the destination
countries. Demographic and economic migration is related to poor
labour standards, high unemployment and the overall health of a
country’s’ economy. Pull factors include higher wages, better
employment opportunities, a higher standard of living and
educational opportunities. If economic conditions are not
favourable and appear to be at risk of declining further, a greater
number of people will probably migrate to countries with a better
outlook. According to the UN International Labour Organization,
migrant workers - defined as people who migrate with a view to
being employed - stood at roughly 169 million worldwide in 2019
and represented more than two thirds of international migrants.
More than two-thirds of all migrant workers were concentrated in
high-income countries.
Environmental and climate migration
The environment has always been a driver of migration, as people flee
natural disasters, such as floods, hurricanes and earthquakes.
However, climate change is expected to exacerbate extreme
weather events, meaning more people could be on the move.

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 According to the International Organization for Migration,
"Environmental migrants are those who for reason of sudden or
progressive changes in the environment that adversely affect their
lives or living conditions, are obliged to leave their habitual
homes, either temporarily or permanently, and who move either
within their country or abroad." It is hard to estimate how many
environmental migrants there are globally due to factors such as
population growth, poverty, governance, human security and
conflict, which have an impact. Estimates vary from 25 million to
one billion by the year 2050.
Push and pull factors
• There are different types of migration:
◦ Voluntary
◦ Involuntary or forced
◦ Internal
◦ Political - internally displaced, refugee and/or asylum
seekers
• Common to all, are the reasons for these movements - push-pull
factors
• The push factor is the reality of the current situation for the
migrant; it is what makes the person consider moving from
the place of origin
• The pull factor is the perceived outcome; it is what they
imagine the move will bring to the place of destination
• Push-pull factors are unique to each migrant depending on
their end goal - what is a pull factor for one migrant may not be
for another
• These factors can be further divided into:
◦ Social
◦ Economic
◦ Political
◦ Environmental
• High levels of unemployment are a push factor, whereas higher
wages and a better lifestyle are a pull factor

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 Push-Pull Factors
Barriers to migration
• There are personal, national and legal barriers to migration
• Personal barriers include emotional and financial factors, these
include:
◦ The cost of migrating:
▪ Closing down costs - selling of home, legal fees etc.
▪ Moving costs - transport, packing and shipping, visas
etc.
▪ Setting up costs - renting or buying a home, legal
fees, schooling etc.
◦ Emotional costs such as not seeing loved ones again;
leaving behind their culture and country etc.
• Immigration laws present the greatest legal barrier to migration
• National barriers occur at a physical or political level:
◦ Distance between origin and destination

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 ◦ Physical danger
◦ Prevented from leaving a country
Voluntary and involuntary migration
• Voluntary migration involves the free choice of movement
either internally or internationally
◦ The usual reason is economic for work, promotion etc.
◦ In developing countries, this is usually internal from rural
to urban areas
◦ In developed countries counter urbanisation is more
common - urban to rural
• Involuntary or forced migration is where the migrant has no
choice but to leave their place of origin
• This is usually an international movement but can also be an
internal movement
• The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR)
estimates 89.3 million people worldwide were forcibly displaced
at the end of 2021, of which 53.2 million were internally
displaced people and 27.1 million were refugees, with the
remaining 4.6 million seeking asylum
• There are a number of reasons for internal forced migration:
◦ Natural hazards such as volcanic eruptions, tropical
storms, floods and droughts
◦ In most cases, survivors will move back home when it is
safe to do so, or
◦ Jobs become available again
• The biggest reason for forced migration is war and persecution
• This includes events such as the Jewish people fleeing German
and Russian troops during the Second World War and more
recently the Syrian civil war where more than half of the
country's population (13 million) has been forcibly displaced
• Ethnic cleansing forces out entire groups or communities from
the country - Sunni and Shia Muslims in the Middle East or
Rwanda in 1994 where the Hutus attempted to wipe out the
Tutsis in 3 months forcing 2 million people to flee
• Not all forced migrants leave their country, and these migrants
are termed an internally displaced person

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 ◦ The Syrian conflict has created a number of refugee and
internally displaced people, as have the conflicts in
Afghanistan and Yemen
◦ Major natural disasters can displace people, such as the
2011 tsunami that forced the evacuation of Fukushima in
Japan or the recent floods in Pakistan.

WHAT ARE THE IMPACTS OF MIGRATION?

The impact of Migration on destination country
Advantages
Cheap Labour:
Migrants often do many unskilled jobs for very little wage. Skilled
migrants are also often happy to give their services for little salary.
Skilled Labour:
Some immigrants are highly skilled and talented, and they contribute
to knowledge and production for the well-being of all in that country.

Cultural Diversity:
Immigrants provide the diversity in many places. Diversity helps
cultures and traditions to loosen grip on racism, discrimination and
things like that. Diversity helps people learn about other ways of life
and what goes on in other places of the world. It brings variety to
almost every part of our ways of life. Diversity helps people to better
appreciate humanity and human rights in general.
Disadvantages
Job loss:
Immigrants may also cause pressure on job issues as the locals often
lose jobs to incoming workers.
Discrimination/racism:
Immigration can fuel racism and discrimination. Immigrants who
cannot speak the local language or do not behave like the locals often
find themselves not accepted in their communities, as people prefer
not to have anything to do with them.
Social/Civil Pressure:
Housing, health, education and many other facilities may suffer with
the pressure of excessive use by more people than it was designed to
take. This can force prices of such amenities to go high, causing
hardship to all.

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Breakdown of culture and traditions:
Traditions and cultures are modified beacause of diversity, and
sometimes healthy ways of lives are polluted as people are exposed to
different ways of doing things. Sometimes new crime incidents
emerge or increase as a result of ‘bad’ people coming in.
Diseases:
As long as people move from place to place, there is a risk of
contagious disease outbreak.
The impact of Migration on the home country
Advantages
Remittances:
It is known that migrants send lots of monies home to support their
family. That is a massive flow of foreign exchange or funds that the
local government and families can tap into for development and
economic growth.
Better job prospects for locals:
When the youth leave, there is less pressure for jobs, and people are
more likely to find something to do.
Knowledge and skills flow:
Particularly for short-term and seasonal migration, migrants often
bring home new ideas, skills and knowledge that they have acquired
from their travel. Many businesses, farm practices and economic
ventures have been started by people who got ideas and knowledge
during the times they spent in migration.
Disadvantages
Loss of skilled labour:
The biggest negative impact on the country of exit perhaps, is the fact
that young graduates (or skilled labour and professional) leave to offer
their services to other countries. In many developing countries,
doctors, nurses, engineers and very bright professionals are lost to
other countries.
Population and markets:
Businesses do better with bigger markets and more buyers. A growing
and healthy population often provides the needed market for
economic growth and development. When the youth leave, the
population stalls and demand for some goods and services fall.
Social/Family:

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When parents leave, children and other dependents suffer the most, as
they loose out on the important psychological development that they
need from good parenting. Many of the children are exposed to social
vices at an early age, because there is no parental control.
WHAT ARE THE IMPACTS OF MIGRATION ON THE
DESTINATION LOCATION?
Migration has both positive and negative impacts on the destination
location.
Positive impacts on the destination location
• Workers will work for low wages and are prepared to do jobs
that local people do not want.
• Increased cultural diversity.
• Skills gaps are filled.
• Boost to the local economy.
• Government tax revenues increase.
• Public services can benefit from an influx of qualified staff, e.g.
doctors and nurses.
• Immigrant groups can increase birth rates.

Negative impacts on the destination location

• Pressure on public services such as schools, housing, and
healthcare
• Overcrowding
• Language and cultural barriers can exist
• Increased levels of pollution
• Increased pressure on natural resources
• Racial tensions and discrimination
• Local people can miss out on jobs due to increased competition
from migrants.
• Migrant groups may not assimilate into local communities.
• Gender imbalance – usually men are more likely to migrate
WHAT ARE THE IMPACTS OF MIGRATION ON THE
ORIGIN LOCATION?
Migration has both positive and negative impacts on the origin
location.
Positive impacts on the origin location
• Unemployment can reduce as there is less competition for jobs.
• Less pressure on natural resources, including food and water.

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 • When migrants return, they bring new skills and knowledge.
• There is less pressure on services such as education and
healthcare.
• Money is often sent back to family and friends (known as
remittances), boosting the local economy.
Negative impacts on the origin location
• There are fewer people to pay tax.
• Fewer skilled migrants, as those with skills and education, tend
to be the people who migrate. This is also known as brain drain.
• Brain drain could harm economic development.
• Borders separate families.
• There are often gender imbalances, as it is often males who
move.
WHAT ARE THE IMPACTS OF MIGRATION ON
MIGRANTS?
Migration has both positive and negative impacts on migrants
themselves.
Positive impacts of migration on migrants
• The opportunity to get a better job.
• Improved quality of life.
• Safety from conflict.
• The opportunity for a better education.
Negative impacts of migration on migrants
• Migrants may run out of money.
• Issues communicating due to language barriers.
• Issues securing accommodation or housing on arrival.
• Illness due to not being able to access healthcare
• Migrants can be exploited.
• Migrants may experience racism.