Title: Migration as livelihood strategy - South Africa's East to West Corridor: altruism gone wrong

Authors: Palesa Makhetha-Kosi; Syden Mishi; Asrat Tsegaye; Sibanisezwe Khumalo

Addresses: Department of Economics, University of Fort Hare, Office C13 Main Building, 50 Church Street, East London 5200, South Africa ' Govan Mbeki Research and Development Centre (GMRDC), University of Fort Hare, Office U1 GMRDC Building, 4 Hill Street, East London 5200, South Africa ' Department of Economics, University of Fort Hare, Office C18 Main Building, 50 Church Street, East London 5200, South Africa ' Department of Economics, University of Fort Hare, Office C17 Main Building, 50 Church Street East London 5200, South Africa

Abstract: Migration has long been considered a livelihood strategy in developing and middle-income countries, mainly because labour is one of the unique assets that most poor families find themselves in possession of. As a result, the migration tendencies are argued to be based on altruism- one family member self-sacrificing for the benefit of the household as a whole. This paper provides a deep analysis of this livelihood strategy through statistical analysis based on household survey data and qualitative analysis of the interviews with key informants. The study focused on households residing in Joe Gqabi district Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. The choice of the sample area is because it has the highest number of members living outside each household. The findings indicate that there is a great need and desire for household members to migrate given the socio-economic profile of the households and the lack of access or constraints to basic key assets. Furthermore, the results reveal that migration is failing as a livelihood strategy, becoming a rather increasing burden to remaining household members. The study findings have both policy and academic research implications.

Keywords: altruism; Eastern Cape; livelihood strategy; migration; South Africa.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEED.2017.086503

International Journal of Education Economics and Development, 2017 Vol.8 No.2/3, pp.101 - 115

Received: 15 Nov 2016
Accepted: 23 Mar 2017

Published online: 10 Sep 2017 *

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