Migration Motives and Employment Outcomes of Ghanaian Migrants: The Role of Skills, Work Experience and Gender

Abstract

Neoclassical economic theories suggest that migration is driven by economic development and regional wage disparities, with individuals making rational cost–benefit decisions. This paper adds to the empirical discussion by highlighting the importance of factors such as gender, prior migration work experience, and skills in shaping migration motives and employment prospects. Analysing data from the seventh round of the Ghana Living Standards Survey (GLSS7), the findings show that men are more likely to migrate for economic reasons or to pursue education, while women often migrate for social reasons, such as marriage or family reunification. The regression estimates show that highly skilled migrants and those with prior migration work experience are less inclined to migrate for education or job-seeking purposes. While skills significantly increase the likelihood of employment among migrants, experience tends to have the opposite effect. The paper also discusses the policy implications of these findings.