Migration, Labor Mobility and Household Poverty in Nigeria: A Gender Analysis

Abstract

The increase in the geographical mobility of labour as a result of poverty, unemployment and unstable economic conditions, among other factors, especially among professionals, has been associated with a brain drain in Nigeria. Despite the high level of migration and subsequent remittances from migrants, a large proportion of Nigerians still live in poverty. The increased participation of women in migration in the country also brings to the fore the existence of gender-specific migration experiences and how this has in turn affected their households. Based on gender, this study assesses the extent of labour mobility, its determinants and how it influences remittance inflows and household poverty using the logit regression model Propensity Score Matching and Linear Regression with Endogenous Treatment Effect Approach. Results reveal that while more males travelled for employment purposes, more females travelled due to marriage arrangements. More of the migrants that were working after migration had worked before migration and had the highest average amount of remittance sent to households. The study shows that labour mobility increases the amount of remittance sent to households. However, the increase was higher among male migrants than female migrants. More than half of the migrants had poor households; meanwhile, labour mobility was found to reduce the extent of poverty. The study recommended that policies that improve the welfare of labour and reduce the brain drain, unemployment and closures of enterprises in the country should be put in place. Also, effective policies and interventions that promote the use of remittances to achieve maximum reductions in poverty should be pursued.

Agricultural commercialisation, poverty reduction and pro-poor growth: evidence from commercial agricultural development project in Nigeria

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Personnel brain-drain syndrome and quality healthcare delivery among public healthcare workforce in Nigeria

“…Consistent child and maternal mortality rates are avoidable if enough doctors are eagerly available to work. The relationship between the number of medical personnel and mortality rates occurring in Nigeria has been recorded in the extant literature, demonstrating the poor magnitude of the paucity of doctors in Nigeria's healthcare sector (Rufai, Ogunniyi, Salman, Oyeyemi, & Salawu, 2019; Suleiman & Mikail, 2020). The core reason many physicians move outside Nigeria every day is the industry's lack of funding and inadequate salary compared to other developed countries.…”

Dynamic Modelling of the Influence of Diaspora Cash Remittance on Macroeconomic Stability in Nigeria

“…Using DMB deposit, credit, loan and liquidity to proxy for financial development, and adopting a structural dynamic model, we found that workers ' remittances show a sign of positive effect on demand deposit, positive and significant effect on liquidity and positive and significant effect on DMB credit and loan. Rufai, et al (2019) assessed the extent of labour mobility, its determinants and how it influences remittance inflows and household poverty using the logit regression model Propensity Score Matching and Linear Regression with Endogenous Treatment Effect Approach. Results reveal that while more males travelled for employment purposes, more females travelled due to marriage arrangements.…”