A Graduate Thesis On: Youth Rural-Urban Migration: Causes, Challenges And Coping Strategy: The Case Of Ambo Town,West Shoa Zone Of Oromia National Regional State.

Abstract

This study envisioned to give perceptiveness of the causes, challenges and coping strategy of youth rural-urban migration. The objective of the study is to explore factors that motivated youth rural-urban migration, the challenges faced by youth migrants at their place of destination and their coping strategies how they resolve their challenges. The study employed a qualitative research approach and purposive sampling technique. The sample size for this study was 17 participants for in an in depth-interview, five key informants and 14 participants in focus group discussion guided by semi-structured instruments. Data Collection Techniques including in depth-Interviews, focus group discussion and the key informant interview was employed to get relevant and sufficient data. The research study found that the full picture of causes for rural youth migration are variously multifaceted. These include, family circumstances, such as economic problem, divorce, education, early marriage, the loss of a parent,, lack of employment opportunities, conflict and insecurity, peer influences that were the major causes for rural youth migrants. The result of this study also exemplify the multifaceted challenges affecting rural youth migrants. These consisted of, Job insecurity, high cost of living, housing problem, abuses and having personal identification card (ID) are the most challenging issues. Findings from this study further indicated that even though they are encountered with several challenges, they have attempted to apply different strategies to cope their challenges to overcome their hardship. These comprises, Borrowing money from friends, sharing room, religious beliefs, collecting over left food from restaurant, using holy water for health and using river water for hygiene were among their coping mechanisms. The study recommends that the federal government and regional governments are expected to consistently implement a dependable legal and institutional framework for the control of rural youth migrants and provision of necessary support for the migrated youth.