Household Income, Migration Networks, and Migration Decisions

This paper analyzes a rich dataset from a nationally representative Nepalese household survey to study household migration decisions considering household per capita income and migration networks. The study highlights three key takeaways: (i) households with higher per capita income are less likely to migrate; (ii) households with more extensive migration networks are more likely to migrate; and (iii) migration networks have a greater influence than income on migration decisions. These findings hold across different model specifications that address potential endogeneity issues and apply to both extensive and intensive margins of migration. The results have important policy implications for Nepal, a country with high levels of temporary international migration and significant remittance inflows. The findings, unexplored hitherto, highlight an important issue relevant to other countries with similar economic, social, and cultural characteristics and large migrant populations. Ce document analyse un riche ensemble de donnees provenant d'une enquete nationale representative des menages nepalais pour etudier les decisions de migration des menages en tenant compte du revenu par habitant des menages et des reseaux de migration. L'etude met en evidence trois points cles : (i) les menages ayant un revenu par habitant plus eleve sont moins susceptibles de migrer ; (ii) les menages ayant des reseaux de migration plus etendus sont plus susceptibles de migrer ; et (iii) les reseaux de migration ont une influence plus grande que le revenu sur les decisions de migration. Ces conclusions sont valables pour differentes specifications de modeles qui abordent les problemes potentiels d'endogeneite et s'appliquent a la fois aux marges extensives et intensives de la migration. Les resultats ont d'importantes implications politiques pour le Nepal, un pays avec des niveaux eleves de migration internationale temporaire et des entrees de fonds significatives. Les conclusions, jusqu'ici inexplorees, mettent en evidence un probleme important pertinent pour d'autres pays ayant des caracteristiques economiques, sociales et culturelles similaires et de grandes populations de migrants. Este articulo analiza un rico conjunto de datos de una encuesta de hogares nepaleses representativa a nivel nacional para estudiar las decisiones de migracion de los hogares considerando el ingreso per capita del hogar y las redes de migracion. El estudio destaca tres conclusiones clave: (i) los hogares con un ingreso per capita mas alto tienen menos probabilidades de migrar; (ii) los hogares con redes de migracion mas extensas tienen mas probabilidades de migrar; y (iii) las redes de migracion tienen una mayor influencia que el ingreso en las decisiones de migracion. Estos hallazgos se mantienen en diferentes especificaciones de modelos que abordan posibles problemas de endogeneidad y se aplican tanto a los margenes extensivos como intensivos de la migracion. Los resultados tienen importantes implicaciones politicas para Nepal, un pais con altos niveles de migracion internacional temporal y significativas entradas de remesas. Los hallazgos, inexplorados hasta ahora, destacan un problema importante relevante para otros paises con caracteristicas economicas, sociales y culturales similares y grandes poblaciones de migrantes.

Automated summary

This paper analyzes the impact of household per capita income and migration networks on household migration decisions using a rich dataset from a nationally representative Nepalese household survey. The study finds that higher per capita income reduces the likelihood of migration, while more extensive migration networks increase the likelihood of migration. Additionally, migration networks have a greater influence on migration decisions than income. These findings have important policy implications for Nepal and other countries with similar characteristics and large migrant populations.