MIGRATION: COMMUNITY CONSEQUENCES AND INDIVIDUAL MIGRANT EXPERIENCES IN AGBOGBLOSHIE BY YAJALIN EBOTUI JOHN (B.A. POLITICAL SCIENCE) A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING, KWAME NKRUMAH UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, KUMASI IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF PHILOSOPHY IN DEVELOPMENT STUDIES JUNE, 2015. DECLARATION I, Yajalin Ebotui John, do hereby declare that this thesis is my own submission towards the Master of Philosophy in Development Studies and, to the best of my knowledge, it contains no material previously published by another person nor material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree of the university or any institution of higher learning, except where due acknowledgement has been made in the text. YAJALIN EBOTUI JOHN ………….………… ……………… (PG8379812) SIGNATURE DATE CERTIFIED BY: DR. RONALD ADAMTEY ……………………. ……………... (SUPERVISOR) SIGNATURE DATE CERTIFIED BY: DR. DANIEL K. B. INKOOM ……………………. ……………... (HEAD OF DEPARTMENT) SIGNATURE DATE i ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I owe the highest gratitude to the creator of all things who I personally believe has seen me through to the successful completion of this thesis. I thank Him for favour of life and the grace to conduct this work in spirit of humility against many odds. I want to render my sincerest thanks and deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Dr. Ronald Adamtey for his immense support in my journey. Without any form and shape, Dr. Ronald’s comments and responses pushed the limits of my thinking to enable me arrive at this destination. I acknowledge with sincerest appreciation Prof. K. K. Adarkwa’s input and contribution to the success of this thesis project. I render thanks to my MPhil Director, Dr. Owusu Ansah for his encouragement and support. To the entire Teaching Staff of the Department of Planning, I express my appreciation for their candid comments and questions during presentations. To the administrators of Katholisher Akademischer Auslander-Dienst (KAAD), I owe you a depth of gratitude for your financial support. Dr. Marko Kuhn and Ms. Simone Saure who were constantly in touch with me in the course of the programme, I thank you for your support. I acknowledge with much gratitude, the support of my Lord Bishop Most Rev. Vincent Sowah Boi-Nai (SVD) (Catholic Bishop of Yendi Diocese), my hardworking Parish priest, Father Joseph Kofi Sukpe and his assistant, Father Michael Cobb (Parish priests of Bimbilla) for recommending me for the KAAD scholarship. Again, I render my sincerest gratitude to my father Mahama Andani (Chief of Tugu traditional Area) for his fatherly advice and counsel in this journey of mine. God bless you and grant you your Heart desire. Furthermore, I extend my appreciation to my family for the moral support and the financial sacrifices they have made and continue to make towards the attainment of formal education. I further seize this opportunity to thank all my friends for their support. I am especially grateful to Abraham Wumbiyeli, Maclean Tagbel, Juliet Buaben, Matthew Gmalifo Mabefam, Awuni Mabel Lariba, Wisdom Dodje Ametorwotia, Joseph Fibina, Banabas B. Mamunde, Ntekuni N. Rosemary and Matthew Yageen. You were always there when I needed you most - the true meaning of friendship. ii ABSTRACT Development disparities between the three northern regions of Ghana and their southern counterparts remain an issue of grave concern since independence. The colonial administration promoted the northern sector as a labour basket for the rich southern cocoa and timber industry and mineral resources. Undoubtedly, this situation resulted in seasonal and sometimes permanent migration of young people from the three northern regions to the southern sector. Though the north-south migration in the country has received much scholarly attention with respect to the causes and patterns of these movements, it is yet to be critically examined in terms of its effects on the socio- economic well-being of migrants and their dependants. Thus, the thesis investigates how migration affects migrants’ well-being. The main objective of the study is to determine the effects of migration on the well-being of migrants and their dependants in Agbogbloshie. The specific objectives are to examine the effects of migration on the income, education, housing and employment conditions of migrants; to determine the effects of migrants’ absence on their households in their areas of origin, to gain insight into the migration decision making process of these young migrants and to explore the experiences of migrants in terms of the challenges and successes from migrants perspective. A mixed research design involving both quantitative and qualitative methods of analysis was used in finding answers to the research questions. The study found that the determinants of well-being; income, education, employment, health, and housing have improved for migrants after migration. The survey results revealed that migrants lived in congested and unhygienic environments, whilst the work they engaged in posed a lot of risks such as carrying very heavy loads and maneuvering between vehicles. On the consequences of migration on source communities, the study found that migration had a mixed effect on Yendi Municipality. Remittances were cited as the main positive effect on migrants’ households since it served as a source of additional income that cushioned relatives in the lean season (June-July). Some of the negative effects included the return of migrants with diseases and loss of moral values on the part of the returned migrants. The study recommends that the development gap between the northern and the southern part of the country be bridged so as to limit migration. iii TABLE OF CONTENT DECLARATION ..............................................................................................................i ACKNOWLEDGEMENT .............................................................................................. ii ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................. iii TABLE OF CONTENT ................................................................................................... v LIST OF TABLES .......................................................................................................... x LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................xi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ....................................................................................... xii CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................................. 1 1.0 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY ........................................................................... 1 1.1 Overview of migration ............................................................................................... 1 1.1.1 What drives migration? ........................................................................................... 3 1.1.2 Defining socio-economic well-being of migrants .................................................... 5 1.2 Statement of the problem ........................................................................................... 6 1.3 Research Questions .................................................................................................... 8 1.4 Research Objectives ................................................................................................... 9 1.5 Argument of the thesis ............................................................................................... 9 1.6 Justification of the study .......................................................................................... 10 1.7 Scope of the study.................................................................................................... 11 CHAPTER TWO ........................................................................................................... 13 2.0 THE DYNAMICS OF MIGRATION ...................................................................... 13 2.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................. 13 2.2 Theoretical review ................................................................................................... 13 2.3 Ravenstein’s laws of migration ................................................................................ 15 v 2.5 The Lewis Dual Sector model: ................................................................................. 17 2.6 The Bright Light Theory .......................................................................................... 18 2.7 Lee’s Push-Pull Theory of Migration ....................................................................... 19 2.8 Sjaastad Human Investment theory .......................................................................... 20 2.9 The Harris-Todaro model of migration .................................................................... 22 2.10 The New Economics of Labour Migration Model .................................................. 23 2.11 The Crawford’s value‐expectancy model ............................................................... 24 2.12 Zelinsky’s Migration, transitions and development theory...................................... 25 2.13 Network migration theory ...................................................................................... 26 2.14 Mabogunje systems theory