POPULATION MIGRATION

This refers to the movement of people from one region to another. Migration can be internal or international.

• Internal migration refers to the frequent movement of people from one area to another within the same country. This is categorized as;
• Rural urban migration, this involves the movement of people from villages to towns. Like from rural areas of Rakai to Masaka town.
• Rural-rural migration, this involves the movement of people from one village area to another village area usually from densely populated areas to sparsely populated. Like Bakiga from Kabale to Kibale.
• Urban-urban migration, this involves the movement of people from one town to another town like from Masaka to Kampala.
• Urban-rural migration, this involves the movement of people from towns to villages like from Masaka to Rakai.
• International migration is the movement of people from one country to another. This is sub divided as;
• Immigration, this refers to the act of people entering a country from other countries. These can be refugees, tourists, officials, etc. like people from S. Sudan to Uganda. Such people are called immigrants.
• Emigration, this refers to the movement of people out of the country. Such people are called emigrants

MAP OF UGANDA SHOWING POPULATION MIGRATION

RURAL URBAN MIGRATION

This is the most common migration in Uganda and the major destinations of migrants is Kampala, Mbarara, Jinja, Gulu, Mbale, Kasese, Kabale, Masaka, etc.

The migrants come from villages of Moroto, Kitgum, Kaabong, Nakapiripiriti to Gulu, Bundibugyo, Sheema to Kasese, Rakai, Kalungu, Kalangala to Masaka, Bududa, Bulambuli, Bukedia, Budaka to Mbale, etc.

MAP OF UGANDA SHOWING RURAL URBAN MIGRATION

Causes of rural urban migrations

There are both ‘pull’ and ‘push’ factors responsible for the movement of people from rural areas to urban areas. Pull factors are the attractive conditions in urban areas well as push factors are the un suitable conditions in rural areas from which people want to run-out or away. These include;

• Limited employment opportunities in rural areas, administrative, commercial and industrial activities are found in Kampala, Masaka, etc therefore attracting the youth for jobs
• Urban areas have better education, health, and other social facilities which pull people into towns like Mbarara and Mbale to enjoy a better life.
• Political security in towns like Gulu town which attracted many people affected by Kony war in the region.
• Most youth from Kisoro are attracted to Kabale town due to urban excitements of cinema, films, recreation like Bunyonyi sites, etc.
• Social amenities in Kampala such as electricity, communication, entertainment of radio Simba and capital, T.vs like Ntv, all attract majorly the youth from Kiboga, Buikwe, etc.
• The development of mining activity in an area provides a pull factor in relation to population migration into such area. For instance in 1960s many migrant workers used to move from Kigezi region to Kasese where copper mining was being carried out seeking for jobs.
• Some people move to urban areas like Jinja after committing crimes in rural areas such as rape and defilement, child sacrifice, etc.
• The landless people in rural areas move to town to seek for alternative way of settlement. This explains why towns like Kasese, Kabale and Mbale are densely populated.
• Natural factors such as drought, epidemic diseases which are harmful to human beings force people to leave rural areas to towns. Recently people have been forced to move out of Rakai and Lyantonde due to aids epidemic.
• Social factors such as male circumcision in Bugishu and female mutilation in Sebai cause the youth to run away to Jinja, Mbale, Gulu and Kampala.
• Excessive population in rural areas like in Kisoro, Sironko, Kabale, Mbale, has led to population explosion on land causing the disadvantaged to migrate to towns.

EFFECTS/CONSEQUENCES OF RURAL URBAN MIGRATION

Rural urban migration has got both positive and negative effects on both rural areas and urban areas. These include;

• It has resulted into depopulation of rural areas of Kiboga, Sembabule causing a negative effect on agricultural development since movement includes escaping of energetic men and women.
• It has resulted into rapid growth of urban areas; however this has got problems such as slum growth, un-employment, high crime rate, poor sanitation like in Kampala suburbs of Katanga, Kisenyi, Kamwokya, etc.
• It has resulted into racial ethnicity diversity which leads to racial conflicts and tension like in central region. This is because movement involves all kinds of citizens.
• It has resulted into intermarriages between tribes which has led to loss of traditional values and culture. This has increased on immoralities and sexual abuse like in Wakiso and Kampala.
• Since rural urban migration increases population in towns, this puts government to task to provide social infrastructure like water, health, education, security, which may drain government budget.
• Rural urban migration may lead to famine due to the decline in agriculture since the energetic men and women who would have facilitated agricultural development in rural areas moved to towns.
• It increases encroachment on wetlands and swamps in cities like Kampala in search for land for settlement. This later result into floods and disease outbreak like in Bwaise, Lubigi, Lugogo, etc.
• Rural urban migration leads to traffic and human congestion in urban areas of Kampala, Jinja and this causes delays especially during rush hours and easy disease spread.
• Positively, rural urban migration is an important source of labour especially unskilled in urban centres. Such labour is used for industrial development like in Mbale and Jinja.
• Rural urban migration leads to land consolidation in rural areas and useful utilization of the available resources by the remaining people in villages.

SOLUTION TO RURAL URBAN MIGRATION

• Addressing the issue of regional economic imbalance through creating employment opportunities and industries in rural areas.
• Agricultural modernization to help to increase on the rate of employment generation in rural areas.
• Controlling the rate of population growth so as to match the number of people to the available resources through family planning.
• Encouraging rural to rural migrations through allowing voluntary migrations from densely populated areas of rural to sparsely populated rural areas.
• Establishing large scale resettlement schemes to help check on this negative phenomena.
• Setting up of social amenities in rural areas like health, education, water, recreation, electricity, etc.
• Fighting against such cultural and traditional practices like forced marriages, circumcision, mutilation, polygamy, etc.