At the Root of Exodus: Food Security, Conflict and International Migration

Drawing from quantitative and qualitative research, the study concluded that food security is a critical factor impacting international migration with far-reaching implications for policy-makers and the wider humanitarian community.

HIGHLIGHTS: 

• For every one percent rise in food insecurity, there is a 1.9 percent rise in the number of people compelled to migrate per 1000 population. Migration itself can cause food insecurity, given the lack of income opportunities and adverse travel conditions along the journey.
• For each additional year of conflict, 0.4 percent more people flee a country per 1000 population. Food insecurity is also a significant cause for the incidence and intensity of armed conflict, which is one of the main drivers of forced migration.
• Most refugees were displaced several times before crossing international borders. Once a migrant’s journey has begun, food and economic security are important factors in a migrant’s decision about whether to continue a journey or settle in the first relatively secure location.
• The access to new technology and social media has revolutionized the scope of migration, its speed, and how it is organised.

The study gave a voice to the people directly affected: more than 230 migrants, including refugees, were interviewed in Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Greece and Italy originating from 10 different countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Egypt, Eritrea, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan, Syria and The Gambia. In addition, a mobile phone survey was conducted among 570 Syrian refugees