Paper short abstract:

This paper will present a research agenda for investigating the links between poverty and income inequalities, on the one hand, and migration on the other.

Paper long abstract:

The paper will examine the ways in which poverty and income inequalities create and constrain opportunities for migration. Using three corridors from the MIDEQ research Hub (China-Ghana, Burkina Faso-Cote d'Ivoire, and Ethiopia-South Africa), we will present a research agenda for investigating the role of inequalities in countries of origin (CoOs), countries of destination (CoDs) and between CoOs and CoDs. We consider how income inequalities within countries of origin influence patterns of migration, either by pushing people to seek an exit in response to economic exclusion, or providing opportunities for those with sufficient resources. in CoDs we consider the ways in which migrants experience inequalities with so-called hosts. We also examine how inequalities between countries of origin and destination influence the sending of remittances, investments in both countries by migrants and their families, and the role (if any) that external development assistance may play in lessening inequalities. The paper will present the conceptual framework for empirical research which will be carried out over the next four years.