Migration aspirations among young people in Egypt : who desires to migrate?

Abstract EN

International migration has been a vital aspect of labor markets in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), particularly Egypt.

Egypt is among the largest ten remittance-receiving countries in the world (Wahhabi 2007).

The primary objective of this paper is to examine the determinants of migration intentions among youth in Egypt.

Studying factors shaping development of migration intentions is important to understanding the migration decision process and predicting future migration flows.

I use a recently fielded survey on adolescents and youth: the 2009 Survey of Young People in Egypt (SYPE).

Based on SYPE, one in three young men in the age group 15-29 expressed willingness / intention to migrate.

I found that having a migrant on one’s social network is one of the key factors in developing migration aspirations.

The wealthiest youth are more likely to want to migrate to the West.

Worrying about future prospects generally is a push-factor.