Rural Migration and Agricultural Development in Colombia

In Latin America 2 t.'3 million people move from Ru areas to cities & several hundred thousand push into colonization areas each yr. Development planners, nevertheless, have paid little attention to policy implications of this process. Data are presented from several studies done in Colombia during 1963 to 1966, & major implications of migration for agri'al development are suggested. Most of the data comes from 700 interviews with Ru Pam's in various parts of Colombia. Information on about 10,000 individuals was analyzed. Major emphasis was placed on determining the following characteristics of migrants: distance moved, level of formal educ, enon background, age & sex. Major findings of study were: (1) 40% of individuals over 15 yrs old in the sample had moved away from the general area of birth. (2) The young & best educated were most likely to move to an Ur area. (3) Ru-to-Ru migration became more important as distance from Ur centers was increased. (4) F's living close to an Ur center were more mobile than those living further away. (5) The propensity to migrate was not clearly associated with econ background. Policy conclusions: Expanded Ru educ will probably accelerate Ru to Ur migration. Land reform will also slow the migration process. Information on migration should be included in development models & planning. AA.