posted on 2024-09-05, 22:27authored byK.C. Zachariah, E.T. Mathew, S. Irudaya Rajan
Migration has been the single most dynamic factor in the otherwise
dreary development scenario of Kerala in the last quarter of the past
century. Migration has contributed more to poverty alleviation and
reduction in unemployment in Kerala than any other factor. As a result
of migration, the proportion of population below the poverty line has
declined by 12 per cent. The number of unemployed persons - estimated
to be only about 13 lakhs in 1998 as against 37 lakhs reported by the
Employment Exchanges - has come down by more than 30 per cent.
Migration has caused nearly a million married women in Kerala
to live away from their husbands. Most of these women, the so-called
"Gulf wives" had experienced extreme loneliness to begin with; but they
got increasingly burdened with added family responsibilities with the
handling of which they had little acquaintance so long as their husbands
were with them. But over a period of time, and with a helping hand from
abroad over the ISD, most of them came out of their feeling of
desolateness. Their sense of autonomy, independent status, management
skills and experience in dealing with the world outside their homes - all
developed the hard way - would remain with them for the rest of their
lives for the benefit of their families and the society at large. In the longrun,
the transformation of these one million women would have
contributed more to the development of Kerala society than all the
temporary euphoria created by foreign remittances and the acquisition
of modern gadgetry.
Kerala is becoming too much dependant on migration for
employment, sustenance, housing, household amenities, institution
building, and many other developmental activities. The inherent danger
of such dependence is that migration could stop abruptly as was shown by the Kuwait war experience of 1990 with disastrous repercussions for
the state. Understanding migration trends and instituting policies to
maintain the flow of migration at an even keel is more important today
than at any time in the past. Kerala workers seem to be losing out in the
international competition for jobs in the Gulf market. Corrective policies
are urgently needed to raise their competitive edge over workers in the
competing countries in the South and the South East Asia. Like any
other industry, migration needs periodic technological up-gradation of
the workers. Otherwise, there is the danger that Kerala might lose the
Gulf market forever.
The core of the problem is the Kerala worker's inability to compete
with expatriates from other South and South Asian countries. The solution
naturally lies in equipping our workers with better general education
and job training. This study suggests a two-fold approach - one with a
long-term perspective and the other with a short-term perspective. In the
short-run, the need is to improve the job skills of the prospective emigrant
workers. This is better achieved through ad hoc training programmes
focussed on the job market in the Gulf countries. In the long-run, the
need is to restructure the whole educational system in the state taking
into consideration the future demand for workers not only in Kerala but
also in the potential destination countries all over the world, including
the USA and other developed countries. Kerala emigrants need not always
be construction workers in the Gulf countries; they could as well be
software engineers in the developed countries.
JEL Classification : J16, J21, J23
Key words : Kerala, emigration, return migration, remittances, gender,
demography, elderly
History
Publisher
Centre for Development Studies
Citation
Zachariah, K.C., E.T. Mathew & S. Irudaya Rajan (2000) Socio-economic and demographic consequences of migration in Kerala. CDS working papers, no.303. Trivandrum: CDS.