Breaking Out Of Poverty Traps: Internal Migration And Interregional Convergence In Russia

Sergei Guriev and Elena Vakulenko

HSE Working papers from National Research University Higher School of Economics

Abstract: We study barriers to labour mobility using panel data on gross region-to-region migration flows in Russia in 1996-2010. Using both parametric and semiparametric methods and controlling for region-to-region pairwise fixed effects, we find a non-monotonic relationship between income and migration. In richer regions, higher incomes result in lower migration outflows. However, in the poorest regions, an increase in incomes results in higher emigration. This is consistent with the presence of geographical poverty traps: potential migrants want to leave the poor regions but cannot afford to move. We also show that economic growth and financial development have allowed most Russian regions to grow out of poverty traps bringing down interregional differentials of wages, incomes and unemployment rates

Keywords: labour mobility; poverty traps; liquidity constraints (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J61 R23 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 45 pages
Date: 2015
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cis, nep-mig, nep-tra and nep-ure
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (47)

Published in WP BRP Series: Economics / EC, January 2015, pages 1-45

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http://www.hse.ru/data/2015/01/21/1105616068/88EC2015.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: Breaking out of poverty traps: Internal migration and interregional convergence in Russia (2015)
Working Paper: Breaking out of poverty traps: Internal migration and interregional convergence in Russia (2013)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hig:wpaper:88/ec/2015

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