Emigration and Health Outcomes in Africa

Severin Tamwo, Université de Yaoundé II Soa
Alban A.E Ahouré, Université Félix Houphouet Boigny
Assi José Carlos Kimou, Université Félix Houphouet Boigny
Germain Kramo, Université Félix Houphouet Boigny
Isabelle Becho, Université Félix Houphouet Boigny

The aim of this article is to empirically analyze the effect of emigration on health outcomes using a sample of 31 African countries over the period 1985-2014. This article also attempts to ascertain whether this effect varies according to emigrants skill levels. In order to achieve these objectives, we focus on the Brücker et al. (2013) database, which provides data on migration flows to 20 OECD countries. In accordance with this database and the empirical literature, the overall emigration rate, the low skilled rate and the high skilled rate are retained as emigration indicators. The health indicator used is life expectancy at birth. Using a random effects model, the results show that emigration improves health in migrants’ home countries. These results also show that migrants with a low skilled have a greater positive effect on health. Overall, our results are robust to a wide range of specifications and identifications methods.