Speaker
Description
Keywords. Migration, Nutrition, Left-behind, Ghana.
Introduction. Migration is a phenomenon that affects those who migrate, the communities they move to, and those who stay behind. The individuals who remain in the household of origin after one of their members emigrates are often referred to as left-behind individuals. In recent decades, there has been substantial interest in the implications of migration on the health and nutrition of left-behind individuals, with findings showing mixed results (see, for instance, Gibson et al. (2011); Carletto et al. (2011); De Brauw (2011); Böhme et al. (2015); De Brauw and Mu (2015)). While the primary motivation for migration often revolves around better income prospects (Kennan and Walker, 2011), it also serves as a strategy to diversify risks and elevate household welfare (Stark and Bloom, 1985). It is also undertaken to improve the overall living conditions of the household through income and to finance consumption, mainly through remittances (Stark and Lucas, 1988). The anticipated outcome is that migration should enhance the nutrition of left-behind individuals, especially with the additional income and remittances that positively impact the quality and quantity of food consumed (De Brauw and Mu, 2011). However, migration’s disruptive nature can also usher in adverse effects. For instance, the absence of a primary caregiver can lead to children experiencing poorer dietary habits (Démurger, 2015). This open-ended issue is also observed in the literature. Indeed, despite the extensive studies, there has been no definitive evidence on the direction of the impact of migration on the nutrition of left-behind individuals.
Objective and Contributions. This paper aims to identify the impact of internal migration on the nutritional status of adults and children left behind. In brief, I seek to answer the following questions: (1) Does migration have negative or positive effects on the nutrition of the individuals left behind? (2) Can these effects differ by age, gender, or nutritional status? (3) What are the transmission channels and the mechanisms involved?
This paper contributes to the existing literature on migration's effects on left-behind individuals' nutrition in four ways. First, it aims to clarify the mixed results in previous studies by focusing on the mechanisms and timing of migration's impacts. Specifically, it examines the role of remittances and other transmission channels, suggesting that migration's effects may vary over time, with initial negative impacts potentially offset by positive long-term effects through remittances. Second, unlike studies that only consider adults or children, this research encompasses the entire household and differentiates effects by gender and nutritional status, thereby offering a comprehensive view on migration's nutrition impacts across all household members. Third, this study leverages panel data to address selection bias more effectively than prior research relying on cross-sectional data, including a novel examination of intra-household selection bias to ensure robustness in comparing migrants and non-migrants. Finally, this issue has not been extensively studied in sub-Saharan Africa and even less so in Ghana, as many focus on Asia or Latin America.
Method. Studying the effect of migration on the outcomes of left-behind individuals is a complex issue fraught with multiple threats. Foremost, migration decisions are non-random, introducing concerns related to reverse causality and selection bias. This selection can manifest both inter-household, relating to the household’s choice to send a migrant, and intra-household, determining which household member migrates. Other threats include endogeneity, which can result from reverse causality. For example, deteriorating health conditions within a household can act as a migration catalyst rather than migration influencing the health of the left behind. Given these potential issues that can emerge, it is difficult to find reliable results. To address these challenges, I adopt an approach using panel data. I utilize two survey waves of the Ghana Socioeconomic Panel Survey spanning 2013/2014 to 2017/2018. I employ a combination of kernel matching and difference-in-differences to establish two comparable groups: individuals who are left behind and those who are not. This approach enables me to address selection bias comprehensively. Matching helps control for selection bias related to observable factors, while the DID model allows me to account for this bias concerning unobservable factors. This empirical strategy significantly enhances the robustness of my findings, setting them apart from much of the existing literature.
Findings and Conclusion. Utilizing the context of Ghana, I find that an individual’s internal migration adversely affects the nutritional status of those left behind. Adults experience a decline in body weight and children a decrease in their BMI-for-age z-score. By deepening the channels and studying the simultaneous effect of sending a migrant between the two survey waves and receiving remittances, I do not identify a positive impact of receiving remittances that could offset the decline in adults’ weight. However, it appears that the most vulnerable children suffer less when households, besides having a migrant member, also receive remittances. Moreover, solely receiving remittances, probably from migrants absent for a longer duration, tends to have a favorable long-term impact on children’s nutrition.
Nevertheless, the primary channel explaining the findings is the disruptive effect of migration. Essentially, I am most likely capturing the short-term effect, i.e., the impact of the onset of migration. The migration process entails significant costs, not only in financing the migrant’s journey but also in terms of the loss of their contribution to household income. In the context of Ghana, migrants are predominantly internal migrants within the country. Therefore, the financial burden on the household of origin is generally lower compared to international migration, and it is likely that the negative impact stems primarily from the loss of the migrant’s previous economic contribution to their household. Consequently, the departure of the migrant might result in a negative income shock. This adverse income shock, while having a somewhat moderate effect on adults’ weight, has a profoundly detrimental impact on children’s nutritional status. Furthermore, even though I find a positive long-term impact of remittances on children, this short-term negative effect could cast a long-lasting shadow, affecting the enduring nutritional health and growth of children who are less resilient compared to adults.
