Men’s Migration and Women’s Fertility in Rural Mozambique

Abstract

Labor migration profoundly affects households throughout rural Africa. This study looks at how men’s labor migration influences marital fertility in a context where such migration has been massive while its economic returns are increasingly uncertain. Using data from a survey of married women in southern Mozambique, we start with an event-history analysis of birth rates among women married to migrants and those married to nonmigrants. The model detects a lower birth rate among migrants’ wives, which tends to be partially compensated for by an increased birth rate upon cessation of migration. An analysis of women’s lifetime fertility shows that it decreases as the time spent in migration by their husbands accrues. When we compare reproductive intentions stated by respondents with migrant and nonmigrant husbands, we find that migrants’ wives are more likely to want another child regardless of the number of living children, but the difference is significant only for women who see migration as economically benefiting their households. Yet, such women are also significantly more likely to use modern contraception than other women. We interpret these results in light of the debate on enhancing versus disrupting effects of labor migration on families and households in contemporary developing settings.

Does indirect exposure to international migration influence marriage and fertility in Albania?

“…Male breadwinner migrations tend to strengthen the patriarchal family culture, which implies a lower bargaining power for women, thereby increasing fertility. A higher participation of women in community emigration, by contrast, was associated with lower fertility, highlighting the importance of social interaction within female networks for the diffusion of innovative behaviour (Agadjanian et al 2011;Lindstrom and Saucedo 2002). Given the diversity of social change since the fall of communism in Albania (modernisation alongside persistent traces of patriarchy), we may expect the diffusion of marriage postponement and birth reduction to increase with both the intensity and the female share of migration.…”

“…The literature mainly focusses on how these factors affect family members left behind. Spousal separation limits childbearing through the interruption of sexual intercourse, although the births deficit is often partially recuperated upon the return of the migrant (Agadjanian et al 2011;Clifford 2009;Lindstrom and Saucedo 2002). During the absence of household members, women take on an increased workload to compensate for the lost labour.…”

“…Financial benefits in the form of remittances transform the economics of reproduction. The additional income source may increase fertility preferences and alleviate financial constraints to family formation, enabling women to meet social norms (Abernethy 2006;Agadjanian et al 2011). As the future anticipated benefits attached to an additional child, who is expected to migrate at adult age, out-weigh the current costs, strategies of household income diversification through migration also promote high fertility (Stark 1981).…”

Migration and health at older age in rural Malawi

“…Migration and health research in SSA has typically focused on individuals of reproductive ages, with particular attention on adolescents and young adults. This is partly due to the health measures of interest in this research, which are more relevant for individuals of reproductive ages, such as HIV infection (Lagarde et al, 2003; Lurie et al, 2003; Welz et al, 2007), infant/child mortality (Brockerhoff, 1990, 1995b; Ssengonzi, De Jong, & Stokes, 2002), or fertility (Agadjanian, Yabiku, & Cau, 2011; Brockerhoff, 1995a; Lee, 1992). …”

Prospects for the comparative study of international migration using quasi-longitudinal micro-data

“… 6 As a consequence, we have excluded innovative and influential data sources like the Men’s Migration and Women’s HIV/AIDS Risks project, a 2006–2011 panel survey of Mozambican women which included reports of husband migration, mostly to South Africa (Agadjanian et al 2011a, 2011b, Yabiku et al 2012) or many household surveys at origin, like the Survey on Overseas Filipinos (Yang 2008, Yang and Choi 2007). …”