International migration in the Pacific Islands: a brief history and a review of recent patterns.

Type Journal Article
Title International migration in the Pacific Islands: a brief history and a review of recent patterns.
Author(s)
Publication (Day/Month/Year) 1985
Publisher Bangkok Thailand United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and~?
URL https://www.popline.org/node/422179
Abstract
The South Pacific Region, with a total population of 5.1 million (1982), contains 22 countries and territories and is spread over 30 million square kilometers of ocean, although it only involves 551,000 square kilometers of land. 3 main international migration flows affect the populations: 1) movement from Pacific islands to the Pacific rim countries of New Zealand, the US, and Australia; 2) movement from 1 Pacific island country to another; and 3) movement from the Philippines to Papua New Guinea and western Micronesia, primarily Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands. Between 1962 and 1982, 36,000 Pacific islanders (9% of the total flow) migrated to New Zealand. Between 1970 and 1974, New Zealand sought unskilled labor from the islands; in 1974, New Zealand's recession demanded fewer laborers. Samoa (50%), the Cook Islands (29%), and Tonga (9%) accounted for 88% of the migration. The US 1980 census reports 83,000 individuals who were born in the Pacific Islands; 63% of these migrants came from Micronesia. By 1976, only 10,000 Pacific islanders were counted in the Australian census, but 1981 saw a 270% increase, with migrants from Papua New Guinea of European descent and migrants from Fiji and Tonga composing most of the influx. Other substantial migration flows occur between the Philippines and Guam. Causes of migration include tendancies to move from low wage to high wage areas, labor demand, and changes in social motivation. Migration consequences include reduced population growth, changed age structures, loss of skilled workers, and increased remittances. Although migrants gain personally from migration and send remittances home, the loss of skilled labor probblyu results in negative impacts on the sending countries. International migration will continue and even increase in this area with only some shifts in the countries of origin and destination.