Journal of Emerging Trends in Educational Research and Policy Studies: Home

Article Title: Binomial Logistic Regression Analysis of Socio-economic Drivers of Irregular Female Labour Migration from Zimbabwe to South Africa
by Kenneth Mahuni and Taruna Shalini Ramessur

Abstract:
The study examined irregular female labour migrants from Zimbabwe to South Africa. Specifically, it sought to partial out the socio-economic drivers since the commence of the second phase of migration around 2005. A survey of (n=1200) was employed in three enumeration provinces: Masvingo, Manicaland and Matabeleland South Provinces. The participants were drawn using exponential nondiscriminatory sampling technique. A Binomial Logistic Regression estimation technique was employed to test 15 hypotheses postulated. Findings from the study underscore the centrality of socio-economic drivers in explaining irregular migration by female labour from Zimbabwe to South Africa. Decision making at household level, risk, household dependency and interaction of income and age were found to be major socio-economic drivers of the migration typology studied. On the other hand, income as an economic variable of the study has the greatest dampening effect on irregular migration reducing it by 83.5% underlining Zimbabwe�s profound economic crisis. In addition, interaction terms included in the model also underscore importance of interplay of household decision making and risk to reduce irregular migration by 30.4%. Education was found to be less significant as a predictor on its own but became significant as an interaction underlining the fact that most sectors (jobs) irregular female migrants target require less skill. Additionally, the findings show the role played by empowerment programmes coupled with education to dampen irregular migration. The paper has important policy implications including scaling up of awareness on risks and dangers of irregular migration, collaboration between neighbouring governments, empowerment of women and finding a lasting solution to Zimbabwe�s long-standing crisis as key policy interventions.

Keywords: Deportees, Labour, Irregular migration, Returnees, South Africa, Zimbabwe

Download full paper