Migration, Education and Work Opportunities by Esther Mirjam Girsberger
Abstract: Most low-income countries feature large gaps in educational attainment between rural and urban areas. Concerted efforts are made to expand education opportunities in rural areas and lower the cost of education. Yet, returns to education mainly arise in urban areas where most skilled work opportunities are located. This paper studies the complex interplay of individuals’ education decisions, their work opportunities and location choices in a Sub-Saharan country that is characterised by a sizeable rural-urban education gap, local work opportunities and high mobility rates. To do so, I develop a life-cycle model of endogenous education, work and location choices and estimate it using rich panel data on migrants and stayers, and multiple locations in Burkina Faso. Individuals move to different locations based on their education: Migration to urban centres increases with education, while migrants at the extremes of the education distribution tend to move abroad. Differences in local work opportunities and returns to education determine expected income gains across locations and hereby explain the migration pattern observed. Using simulation techniques, I then show that migration prospects are a key driver of rural individuals’ education choices. Costless migration to urban areas increases educational attainment by up to 50% in rural areas, while the effect of emigration prospects is more nuanced. Hence, migration policies can be used to stimulate educational attainment in rural regions, but they need to be carefully implemented.