Resource information
This paper describes stylized facts
about internal migration and the labor force in Egypt, and
shows how internal migration in the country is low compared
with international standards. Using aggregate labor force
survey data, the paper shows how individuals migrate to
governorates with higher wages. With a Mincerian equation,
the analysis finds that migrants earn premiums with respect
to non-migrants, except for those migrants with low
education levels. The aggregate labor statistics reveal
lower unemployment rates among migrants, a phenomenon that
is verified by an employment equation. According to the
econometric results, migrants are more likely to be
employed, even after controlling for other observable
individual characteristics. Finally, the paper estimates a
Probit model for the decision to migrate, finding that more
educated individuals are more likely to migrate,
agricultural workers have a lower probability of migrating,
and individuals from governorates in which food production
for own consumption is higher are less likely to migrate.
These results suggest that low educational attainment and
the "food problem", which ties resources to food
production to meet subsistence requirements, are at the root
of low migration in Egypt.
