Turning the Tide: Migration and Urban Market Systems Development

In previous symposia, various sessions raised the importance of migration, especially rural to urban migration. While most donors continue to favor rural poor communities, there are increasingly more poor moving to and living in urban environments. Moreover, past the known rural to urban migration patterns, other types of migration, including abrupt migration from shocks and stresses, can be disruptive in terms of social norms and coping mechanisms that can have positive and negative consequences. From a market systems perspective, more effective labor markets can play a central role in easing substantial shifts in populations and playing a central role in leveraging human capital in an increasingly more inclusive way to generate economic and general social well-being benefits. However, ineffective and/or misaligned labor market systems can also exacerbate challenges that emerge from such shifts. Panelists explore the complexities of urban landscapes, migration, and labor markets, including how they are trying to catalyze the emergence of more effective market systems and services that ease the transition, especially for vulnerable populations that feel compelled to move.

Presented By:

Cecilia Rivera, Swisscontact Peru

Deepak Visvanathan, Habitat for Humanity’s Terwilliger Center for Innovation in Shelter India

Prasanna Sriraman, Habitat for Humanity’s Terwilliger Center for Innovation in Shelter India

Juan Manuel Sanchez, Creative Associates International – Nicaragua

Sarka Sengezenar, Creative Associates International

Nicole Goldin, Abt Associates