Economic Drivers of Migration and Climate Change in LDCs

Environmental migration is a topic which has given rise to widespread debate and gloomy predictions about the state of the world by 2050, but where rigorous research and empirical evidence are unfortunately in short supply. This study paper reviews the existing research on - and empirical evidence of - how climate change and climate variability in Less Developed Countries (LDCs) affects two main drivers of migration identified by migration models in the economic literature, namely: a) income level differentials between origin and destination areas and income variability in origin areas, and b) how they in turn affect migration. This paper highlights the need for a clearer picture of the driving force behind the link between rainfall and migration, which would in turn benefit policymaking in this area.