As an increasing frequency of droughts damages the climate resilience of households, it can lead to persistently higher migration likelihood. 

Professor Salvatore Di Falco, PhD candidate Anna B. Kis, and Professor Martina Viarengo have published their latest research in CIES Research Paper #73.

The rural population in Sub-Saharan Africa is at high risk of experiencing adverse effects of climate change. With a high dependence on agriculture, increasingly frequent and extreme droughts threaten the livelihoods of many households. Di Falco, Kis, and Viarengo find that many households use migration to other areas as an income-diversification strategy. In the CIES Research Paper, they examine the effect of different types of cumulative weather shocks on the decision to migrate for individuals living in rural households. 

They find  that  while  a  single  drought  has  a 'relatively  moderate  migration-inducing  effect,  a  series  of severe shocks have a much larger effect.' The study shows the importance of examining the impact of cumulative weather shocks, rather than only recent events, in the empirical investigation of migration. These findings have significant policy implications. In a context where climatic models forecast an increase in the frequency of extreme events in Africa, the impact on 'persistent migratory flows will be significant and long-lasting'.