Migration and Mortality in Sub-Saharan Africa: Evidence from the Nairobi Urban Health and Demographic Surveillance System (NUHDSS)

Donatien Beguy, African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC)
Philippe Bocquier, Université Catholique de Louvain

Although Nairobi remains attractive to many migrants as the major labor market in Kenya, a significant proportion of them ended up living in slums or slum-like conditions in the city, without proper access to basic social services such as sanitation and affordable clean water. Few studies have addressed how migration affects the uniquely poor health outcomes observed among slum dwellers in SSA. Studies on the relationship between migration and mortality usually focus on the rural-urban divide, concluding that migration is selective upon health in both directions. Taking advantage of longitudinal data collected under the Nairobi Urban Health and Demographic Surveillance System (NUHDSS) during the period 2003-2010 in two informal settlements in Nairobi city, Kenya, we examine the relation between migration and mortality among adults. We use a two-stage equation model controlling for migration selection bias in order to analyze adult mortality by causes of death.