Volume 41 - Article 18 | Pages 491–544  

Migration influenced by environmental change in Africa: A systematic review of empirical evidence

By Marion Borderon, Patrick Sakdapolrak, Raya Muttarak, Endale Kebede, Raffaella Pagogna, Eva Sporer

Abstract

Background: Despite an increase in scholarly and policy interest regarding the impacts of environmental change on migration, empirical knowledge in the field remains varied, patchy, and limited. Generalised discourse on environmental migration frequently oversimplifies the complex channels through which environmental change influences the migration process

Objective: This paper aims to systematise the existing empirical evidence on migration influenced by environmental change with a focus on Africa, the continent most vulnerable to climate change.

Methods: We select 53 qualitative and quantitative studies on the influence of environmental change on migration from the comprehensive Climig database and systematically analyse the literature considering the multidimensional drivers of migration.

Results: Environmental change influences migration in Africa in an indirect way by affecting other drivers of migration, including sociodemographic, economic, and political factors. How and in what direction environmental change influences migration depends on socioeconomic and geographical contexts, demographic characteristics, and the type and duration of migration.

Conclusions: The contextually contingent nature of migration–environment relationships prevents us from drawing a universal conclusion, whether environmental change will increase or suppress migration in Africa. However, this study unravels the complex interactions between the nature and duration of the environmental pressure, the livelihood of the populations, the role of kinship ties and the role of demographic differentials on migration response.

Contribution: The review provides an initial systematic and comprehensive summary of empirical evidence on the environmental drivers of migration in Africa. It also discusses the implications of the scale, materials, and methods used in the 53 studies.

Author's Affiliation

• Marion Borderon - Universität Wien, Austria EMAIL
• Patrick Sakdapolrak - Universität Wien, Austria EMAIL
• Raya Muttarak - International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), Austria EMAIL
• Endale Kebede - Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien, Austria EMAIL
• Raffaella Pagogna - Universität Wien, Austria EMAIL
• Eva Sporer - Universität Wien, Austria EMAIL

Other articles by the same author/authors in Demographic Research

Is Buddhism the low fertility religion of Asia?
Volume 32 - Article 1

Most recent similar articles in Demographic Research

Migration’s contribution to the urban transition: Direct census estimates from Africa and Asia
Volume 48 - Article 24    | Keywords: migration, population growth, urbanization

Culture portability from origin to destination country: The gender division of domestic work among migrants in Italy
Volume 47 - Article 20    | Keywords: childcare, culture, epidemiology, gender, housework, migration

Endogamy and relationship dissolution: Does unmarried cohabitation matter?
Volume 47 - Article 17    | Keywords: endogamy, exogamy, migration, partnership dissolution, relationship type

The ethnic wage penalty in Western European regions: Is the European integration model confirmed when differences within countries are considered?
Volume 46 - Article 23    | Keywords: Europe, integration, migration, penalty, regions, wage discrimination

Nativity differentials in first births in the United States: Patterns by race and ethnicity
Volume 46 - Article 2    | Keywords: first birth, migration, race/ethnicity