Population MIGRATION

The migration of people from rural areas to urban areas in their own country, e.g. people from Kampongs to Bandar.

Migration is the movement of people from one place to another, both permanently or temporarily. Temporary Migration can be seasonal or on a daily basis. It includes movement between and within countries. This movement has effects on the density of the population as well as on the population structure of a place. It sometimes causes an imbalance in the sex ratio, in the case of men moving out of the villages or towns to search for work elsewhere, or a sudden increase in population because of a flow of new immigrants. There are two main types of migration internal and international migration.

5. Public health problems. 6. Unemployed and subsequent crimes among dwellers. 7. Breakdown of law and order. 8. Competition for jobs.

A Migration of people from rural areas to urban areas

Causes:
1. Shortage of food due to increasing pressure on the limited land. 2. Agriculture, the only area of employment in rural area. 3. Job opportunities in commerce and industry in urban area. 4. Better living conditions or higher living standards in urban area. 5. Medical and educational facilities in urban area. 6. Occasional floods or drought in rural areas make them homeless and without food.

Reasons for the differences between the birth rate and the death rate in urban and rural areas of a developing country.
1. Family planning is successful in urban areas. 2. Improved medical facilities are widely used to prevent deaths in urban areas. 3. Lack of hospitals and clinics in rural areas, hence, higher death rate. 4. Higher level of education in urban areas and late marriages. 5. Pressure of work for husband and wife in cities, less time for children. 6. Rural community needs larger family to work in farms, 7. Higher standard of living among urban dwellers.

Consequences:

1. Internal Migration

1. 2. 3. 4.

Over crowded cities (urban areas). Housing shortage. Emergence of slums. Unhygienic living conditions and spread of disease.

Problems resulting from migration in rural areas:

this

1. Shortage of young people to work in farms. 2. Agricultural lands are difficult to develop.

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3. Decline in agricultural productivity.

lowlands. This type of farming is called transhumance.

A Seasonal Migration
This refers to movement of people to areas where they hope to seek a livelihood away from home region. Causes:
1. Changes in the weather force nomads in dry areas to move out in search of water and pasture for their animals. Migration of this kind is common in the hot Middle East. 2. In the U.S.A. and Australia, people move into agricultural areas in summer to work on farms during harvesting season. This is to earn money and they return home later. 3. The Blacks or African natives of South Africa move from the homeland to work in the cities since the homelands have little job opportunities. 4. In countries like Switzerland, farmers move their animals to upland pastures in spring. During winter the highland pasture becomes snow covered and the nomads bring back the animals to

Consequences:
1. Workers doing manual jobs may be subjected to discriminations. 2. Living conditions are poor since they live without proper basic amenities such as water and sanitation. 3. Large sums of money earned by migrant workers will contribute greatly to the economy of the areas from which they came.

government encouraged this type of migration of people to less densely populated islands of Kalimantan and Irian Jaya. This is transmigration. 2. High population density had resulted in over cultivation of land and shortage of food in rural areas. 3. The migrants were encouraged to settle in the new land with guarantee of land for farming and building houses.

Consequences:
1. Each family was provided with at least 2 hectares of land, seeds and food supplies. Prosperous farming has made their lives comfortable. 2. Plantation farming was introduced and many settlers were given employment opportunities. 3. Crop production has increased and accessibility has improved with the building of roads. 4. Cultural clashes broke out between the sophisticated immigrants and indigenous people, e.g. Irian Jaya. 5. Lack of knowledge about the landscape of the new settlement has led to widespread soil erosion. 6. Deforestation was practised in order to increase the income has

A Planned Migration
This is organised by the government in a country to reduce the problems of overpopulation in one part of the country by moving people to less populated parts. Indonesia practices planned migration. Causes:
1. In the 1970s and 1980s, Java with a population density of 700 persons per sq. Km. and Madura islands were overpopulated and experienced unemployment and poverty. About 90% of Indonesias population was in the islands. The

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resulted in the destruction of virgin forest, the habitat of rare animals and plants. 2.

International Migration
This is refers to the movement of people from one country to another by crossing international boundaries.

Lankan government troops in the 1980s. 3. Natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, volcanic eruption and drought may compel people to move out for shelter in another country. Example: Millions of Ethiopians (North Africa) fled to neighbouring countries like Somalia because of a severe drought in the mid 1970.

A Involuntary Migration
Causes:
1. Persecution due to race, religion or political belief forced people to flee from a country and find refuge in another. Example: More than a million, South Vietnamese escaped by land and sea during Vietnam War in the 1960s and 1970s and sought refuge in other countries. 2. Destruction of property and danger to life caused them to people to move out. Example: The exodus of Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka to India during the ethnic warfare between the Tamil rebel forces and the Sri

Consequences:
1. Refugees have to lead a miserable lifeshortage of food and the basic amenities of life. 2. The host country feels the strain of feeding and sheltering the refugees. 3. The new-comers find it difficult to adopt the conditions of life in the host country. 4. After a period of time, the refugees may become reluctant to return to their own countries, since the standard of living in the host country is higher.

1. They seek better standard of living and good jobs. Example: Many Asians have gone to Western countriesThe United Kingdom, the United States of America, and Australia to start a new life. 2. The desire to have a better education for their children. Example: Many parents are sending their child or children to the U.S. and the U.K. to study then the children may settle down there after their education. 3. Highly skilled professional such as doctors, nurses, engineers, teachers, scientists, and computer specialists emigrate to more developed countries to give their families a better life.

Consequences:
1. People of one ethnic group get together and live their lives separately from the natives of the host country to form cultural unity. 2. Racial discrimination and hatred between groups may cause problems. 3. Social conflicts and poverty may result over time.

A Voluntary Migration
Causes:

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4. The immigrants may find it difficult to integrate and assimilate with the natives. 5. The emigration of skilled people will cause burden to their own country.

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