Internal Migration and its Impact on Local Economies

Internal migration refers to the process of population redistribution within the national boundary of a country. Such movements often involve a significant shift of population even though the migrants do not cross any international boundary.Spurred primarily by the processes of urbanisation and industrialisation, evidences indicate internal migration as response to a variety of social, economic and demographic factors in both developed and less developed parts of the world.

In the less developed parts of the world, another factor that has contributed to this rural-urban migration is the gap in the levels of development between the two areas and marriage. In more recent times, the world has witnessed a series of forced internal migration, particu­larly in Africa, as a result of civil war, ethnic conflict, famine, deteriorating economic conditions and political repression. These instances of internal migration have had significant impacts on the population geography and economy of the individual countries.

Figure 1.1 Internal Migration in The United States

The debate over whether internal migration is a an asset or burden for local economies, has been dwindling for years now. Many argue for the new opportunities and benefits internal migrants initiate, but the unforeseen disruption caused by them outweighs the cheap labour, skill development and supposed cultural composite, it guarantees.

Figure1.2 Internal Migration in China

Internal displacement affects economies in many overlapping and interconnected ways:

Figure 1.3 Internal Migration In Russia

1.Housing and Healthcare infrastructure - As large hosts of people exceedingly migrate to urban areas, municipalities and the government is forced to expand running shelters, hospitals and accommodations to cover their basic needs, putting pressure on the budgets of local authorities and humanitarian agencies. A recent study in Ukraine found that internal migrants suffered from high levels of post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety Thus, providing adequate healthcare to them also involves additional costs for local authorities.

2.The Provision of Education - Internally displaced children in host communities put an additional burden on local schools, etc and require extra resources. Such measures are essential to secure a child’s future income and thus economic potential.

3.The Market For Labour - The arrival of internal migrants, vying for employment, disrupts the wage levels for pre-existing labour, increases unemployment and the requirement of social protection.

4.Indigenous communities/factories - Internal migration also means being uprooted from one’s familiar ecosystem and natural resources. This is particular detrimental to indigenous communities, factories etc, whose lives and livelihoods are closely linked to their environment and play an important role in the economy.

Depletion of natural resources, increased pollution, increased tension, and instability, further puts pressure on security forces, cleanliness agencies, etc to expand, thus increasing the expenditure of the country as a whole. It is estimated that the costs of economic disruption caused by the internal migration due to war in Syria are even greater than those of the physical damage and destruction.Moreover, data from 526 regions in 21 countries show that there is a strong positive relationship between internal migration and domestic riots, which have devastating effects on the economy.

Thus, we can effectively conclude that although internal migration is seen as viable process regarding cheap labour, it’s long term impact on the economy, which is the backbone of any country is seemingly disastrous, proving to be nothing short of a burden for the host region.