Abstract
Rural-urban migration is one of the major factors contributing to urbanization and has serious implications for rural livelihoods and urban infrastructure in Bangladesh. This study attempts to analyze the determinants of migration in four sub-districts of Chapainawabganj-Shibganj, Gomostapur, Nachol, and Bholahat. A structured field survey of 400 rural households was carried out, with 100 households selected from each sub-district using a simple random sampling strategy. The data were analyzed in the logistic regression model with incorporation of 12 explanatory variables on household characteristics, economic factors, access to resources, and perceptions of urban amenities. The analysis showed that the perceived urban amenities were the most influential, with a coefficient of 3.1137 at p < 0.001, showing that better recreational facilities, healthcare, and education are important in attracting migrants. Social networks and financial credit also played major positive roles, as shown by the coefficients at 1.8709 and 1.6573, respectively. In contrast, households with better rural utilities, such as water and electricity, had less intention to migrate, while household income and formal employment status raised the chances of decreasing it: coefficient = -1.3453, p = 0.002; coefficient = -0.00003, p = 0.006; and coefficient = -1.2751, p = 0.008, respectively. The study emphasizes that targeted policy interventions have improved the living standards in the rural areas, including recommendations on rural health and sanitation, education, utilities, rural industrialization, and decentralized urbanization by strengthening the small towns in Chapainawabganj that could reduce migration pressure with a corresponding assurance of sustainability in development
