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Human movement is part of life for many people all over the world.
The process of migration involves many factors ranging from economic to
social to political. Mobility of populations is a large reason why
infectious diseases spread and on the continent of Africa migration is
a large part of why AIDS has spread so dramatically. There are five
reasons for migration: external factors (globalization), government policies
and programs, community-level variables (kin, chain migration), household
decisions and consideration, environmental and resource factors (Oucho
and Gould 272-275).
Of the types of migration (see link at left), Rural-rural migration is the most common of the types of migration with farmers moving spontaneously in search of new land (Oucho and Gould 263). Rural-urban migration, however, is more significant in influencing long term trends in spatial distribution. The main reasons to migrate is the opportunity for better jobs but also the availability of better health care, education and housing (Oucho and Gould 264). Women usually migrate to a nearby urban center as opposed to another country (Sheldon 7). This means that they are then able to stay closer to their families and can return home for visits for holidays or other events easily. Families who choose to migrate are often wealthy or choose to sponsor a few members of their family to migrate to the city (Oucho and Gould 289). There is a common misconception that migration is simply one-way whereas the reality is that many Africa rural-urban migrants commonly return home after a time spent in the city (Herdt 9). Cities can be full of new opportunities but can also present many difficulties. Women experience a change in status in the city. Once the women moved to the city, they found that they had to renegotiate their position in the family as a way to improve and protect themselves (Sheldon 9). Women in the city rarely make unilateral decision for their families especially compared to the women in the villages who often make joint decisions with their husbands (Sheldon 10). |
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