Impacts of migration on time allocation of those who remain at home in rural Nepal

This paper examines the effects of migration on time allocation in work activities of left-behind family members in Nepal with attention to gender and age. Based on Nepal's Labor Force Survey, we find that, in response to an outmigration of a family member, working-age women allocate more time towards agriculture and domestic and care work, while the amount of time working-age men and women spend on collecting water and firewood also rises. Migration also increases girls' and women's time in non-agricultural responsibilities. Thus, migration generates a loss in household labour supply and reshapes household division of labour in labour-intensive activities and traditional gender roles.