The impacts of economic growth and governance on migration: evidence from Vietnam

We examine the effect of income level and governance quality on inter-province migration in Vietnam using a gravity model. Consistent with previous studies on migration, we find that people tend to move from low-income provinces to high-income ones. Among the income components, wage income is the most important in pushing and pulling migrants. Higher non-farm income also attracts more immigrants. The migration flow is also associated with the quality of governance and public administration. Low public services and administrative procedures tend to push people to emigrate, while better control of corruption and more transparency and accountability tend to pull immigrants.