Ethiopia - Rural to Urban Movements in Somali Region, Flow Monitoring Survey (FMS) Report (July - September 2023)

In order to increase the availability of evidence on rural to urban migration flows and trends, as well as needs, coping mechanisms and motivations of drought-affected persons, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Data and Research Unit (DRU), through the Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) methodology, set up and piloted two internal Flow Monitoring Points (FMPs) in Gode and Jigjiga, two major urban centres in the Somali region of Ethiopia. During the pilot, the Flow Monitoring Registry (FMR) was deployed on a daily basis to observe migration flows, and the Flow Monitoring Survey (FMS) was deployed on a weekly basis to produce data on the intentions and profiles of individuals travelling through the two points. 

The findings in this report are reflective of FMS data collected between 1 July and 30 September 2023. During this period, a total of 37,909 movements were observed through the FMR, and 1,365 individuals were approached to answer the FMS. According to the results of the FMS:

• For both respondents travelling through Gode and Jigjiga, the most reported employment status was unemployed and looking for a job (62.22%, on average). 
• Drought was the most common reason for migrating for respondents travelling through Gode (64.95%), followed by food insecurity (56.81%). For respondents interviewed in Jigjiga, the most reported reason for migrating was food insecurity (51.08%), followed by drought (41.69%). 
• Out of those individuals sampled in Gode, 86.71% of respondents had travelled from a rural location and 82.73% intended to travel to an urban location. Out of those interviewed in Jigjiga, 55.69% of respondents had travelled from an urban location, and 94.15% intended to travel to an urban location.
• For both respondents travelling through Gode and Jigjiga, the highest share of respondents reported not knowing (or not wanting to answer) on how long they planned on staying in their intended destination (45.61%, on average). This demonstrates a high level of uncertainty and unpredictability when it comes to the intended duration of their stay. 
• Out of the 56.95% of respondents who had faced specific difficulties during their journey, the most reported difficulty was hunger/thirst, which was reported by 93.83% of respondents.