Short-Term Returns to Agricultural Households' Migration Decisions: Evidence from a Tracking Panel Data Study in Malawi

Albert Alwang, Purdue University

Abstract

This study explores the welfare implications of two agriculture household decisions in rural Malawi; for the entire households to migrate or for the households to send out one or more individuals to form or join another household. Like other livelihood strategies taken by rural households in Sub-Saharan Africa, these decision are frequently made as responses to ‘push’ and ‘pull’ factors. I find that on average households that migrated between 2009/10 and 2012/13 experienced a 9 - 16 percentage point reduction per adult equivalent consumption. These agriculture households appear to be pushed into migration, as households were more likely to migrate from areas that were characterized with higher levels of precipitation variability and saw a reduction in revenue from own-farm crop production. Alternatively, on average agriculture households that decided to split between 2009/10 and 2012/13 (send out one or more individuals) experienced a 28 - 34 percentage point growth in consumption per adult equivalent. This growth is primarily driven by the altering of the household’s structure through a reduction in household size. The analysis shows that the decision to split, may not be viable livelihood strategy for all households, as it partly depends on whether the initial household has children of the age of marriage.

Degree

M.S.

Advisors

Ricker-Gilbert, Purdue University.

Subject Area

Agricultural economics|Sub Saharan Africa Studies

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