Correlates of youth internal migration and employment in Uganda

Abstract

Background: Young people continue to gravitate from rural to urban Uganda. Whereas studies on drivers of this mobility abound, less is known about the predictors of internal migration and employment. This study investigated the correlates of youth migration and employment.Data and methods: Primary data were collected from 1,537 respondents. Binary and multinomial logistic regression models were fitted to predict migration and employment status, respectively.Findings: Being an older youth increased the odds of outmigration and chances of employment. Hailing from a rural environment increased chances of outmigration. The never married youths were less likely to be self-employed but more likely to be paid employees than their married counterparts. Females were less likely to be employed than males.Conclusion: Age, home environment and sex were significant correlates of migration and employment. We recommend improvement in rural conditions and strengthening programmes that address the gender gap in employment opportunities.