Net migration

The net migration rate is the difference between the number of immigrants (people coming into an area) and the number of emigrants (people leaving an area) throughout the year. When the number of immigrants is larger than the number of emigrants, a positive net migration rate occurs. A positive net migration rates indicates that there are more people entering than leaving an area. So when we have more emigrants than immigrants the result is a negative net migration rate, meaning that more people are leaving than entering the area. When there is an equal amount of immigrants and emigrants, the net migration rate is balanced.

The net migration rate is calculated over a one-year period using the mid year population and a ratio.

Migration occurs over a series of different push and pull factors that revolve around social, political, economical, and environmental factors according to Migration Trends. Social migration is when an individual migrates to have a higher standard of living, to be closer to family or to live in a nation with which they identify more. Political migration then is when a person is going in as a refugee to escape war or political persecution. Economical migration is moving to a place where one can aspire to have a career and better job opportunities which end up contributing to better living conditions. Lastly, environmental migration is when natural disasters force you to move into a new area. Once we analyze all of the migrating factors we can get to the idea that the net migration rate can tell us so much about a country. For example, if there are a lot of people coming in and not many leaving we can assume it is a wealthy country that keeps evolving and generating more and more opportunities. On the other hand, if not many people are coming in and many are leaving it is easy to assume that there is a chance of violence, low economy, or not enough resources to fulfill the existing population.

N = (I - E) / M X 1,000

N = Net Migration Rate

I = Number of Immigrants Entering the Area

E = Number of Emigrants Leaving the Area

M = Mid Year Population

At the start of the year, country A had a population of 1,000,000. Throughout the year there was a total of 200,000 people that immigrated to (entered) country A, and 100,000 people that emigrated from (left) country A. Throughout the year there was a total of 100,000 births and 100,000 deaths. What is the net migration rate?

First, find the mid year population for country A.

M = Population at Start of Year + Population at End of Year / 2

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