Poverty in Unindustrialized Countries Causes Illegal Immigration

One of the most pressing issues in the developed nations is the issue of illegal immigration. Illegal immigration is the movement of people from their native countries into another country without proposer documentation and valid legal permission. Statistically, the highest number of immigrants to the developed countries is composed of those from underdeveloped countries.  They are characteristic of inadequate levels of education, straining financial lives among other issues that are associated with poverty. Underdeveloped countries have still not made it to the level of industrialization that would allow them to employ a good number of their citizenry and hence most of them are left suffering. Most of the immigrants from developing countries also acknowledge that their presence in the developed states is to find a stable livelihood. Poverty in unindustrialized countries is a vehement reason for illegal immigration in developed states.

Illegal immigration is the migration from a country of origin to another country in a manner that violates the migration laws of a country. Migration rules require that one follows the requirements of immigration and documentation being done such that their presence in the foreign country is known to the foreign government as well as to their home government. Legal migration from one country to the other is therefore valid and authorized, and hence there is nothing to hide in it (Hoynes, Page & Stevens, 2006). However, illegal immigrants are not documented. They understand that their presence in a foreign country is illegal and hence they move using hidden processes which are unlawful. It is therefore profound to understand that poverty is not one of the documented reasons for immigration and that is why it is a cause of illegal migration in such an instrumental manner.

Underdeveloped nations have low levels of industrialization, and hence there are limited employment opportunities for the inhabitants of the countries. Underdeveloped nations have very little capital for expansion too, and therefore they cannot absorb more people into employment. They are also characteristic of a high population, and hence a significant number of people from the underdeveloped nations do not have stable employment (Patler & Pirtle, 2018).  There is, therefore, an immense number of people from underdeveloped nations who are held in poverty in their mother countries. Most of them are however educated and yearn for the environment. They are therefore desperate for better living standards. The educated population in the underdeveloped countries alongside those who are not learned too understand the infinite opportunities in the developed countries and hence the move in search of employment illegally. It is, therefore, true that poverty in underdeveloped countries is a cause of illegal immigration.

Governments of underdeveloped countries also have poor technological and legal mechanisms to follow up on the movements of their citizens in and out of the country. Poverty has also affected the nations such that their governments are also not able to coordinate the movement of their people through technological and legal mechanisms (Nepal, 2015). People from the underdeveloped countries, therefore, find easy mechanisms to move out of their countries to developed countries either by manipulating the gaps in the system or using bribe. It is therefore clear that poverty in underdeveloped countries favored illegal immigration in many ways, the most common ones being the ability of their immigration systems to be manipulated as well as little care from their governments.

Research shows that illegal immigrants are an active part of the economies of the established nations. Due to poverty in their mother countries, illegal immigrants want stable employment when they land in the developed nations. They are primarily manipulated and are paid lower, than the minimum wages that are stipulated by the governments of their countries. For instance in the in the United States, most illegal immigrants are hired by the middle and lower class families. They are paid lower than the rational American workers would accept to be paid and hence they seem to be a good option for the middle and lower classes in the country (Patler & Pirtle, 2018). The same case is experienced in almost every other developed country where illegal immigrants are primarily welcomed for employment as they provide cheap labor. It would not have been the case if their mother countries were not in a state of poverty as they could not accept to be paid meager wages in foreign nations. In that spectral view, it would be necessary to conclude that poverty in underdeveloped counties is a striking reason for illegal immigration.

Conclusively, illegal immigration in developed countries, especially in the United States, is on the rise. Though many causes are affiliated with illegal immigration, poverty in underdeveloped countries is a crucial reason for increased illegal immigration in developed countries. Due to poverty, underdeveloped countries have low employability due to low levels of industrialization. Most of them are also overpopulated, and hence there many of their citizens find it worthy to move and seek employment on developed states. Poverty also makes the governments of underdeveloped countries be less restrictive of immigration. Illegal immigrants are also prone to cheap employment because they find it better than being unemployed. Poverty in underdeveloped countries is, therefore, such an immense cause for illegal immigration. 

References

Hoynes, H. W., Page, M. E., & Stevens, A. H. (2006). Poverty in America: Trends and explanations. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 20(1), 47-68.

Nepal, S. (2015). A Study Of Maritime Refugees And Illegal Immigrants via Sea.: Comparison of Migration Situation in Europe.

Patler, C., & Pirtle, W. L. (2018). From undocumented to lawfully present: Do changes to legal status impact psychological wellbeing among Latino immigrant young adults?. Social Science & Medicine, 199, 39-48.