NOVAFRICA Seminar: Melanie Morten, Stanford University “The effects of legal short-term migration”

What are the effects of legal short-term migration on households in origin countries?

As we begin the 2025/2026 NOVAFRICA Seminar Series, we are pleased to welcome Professor Melanie Morten from Stanford University, who will present her paper on Wednesday, September 10, at 11:30 AM (Lisbon time) in Room D-115 at Nova School of Business and Economics, Carcavelos campus:

“The effects of legal short-term migration: Evidence from the H-2A program”

Abstract

In 2023, 300,000 temporary legal migrants worked on H-2A visas in the agricultural sector in the United States. These migrants — primarily men — hail primarily from Mexico. In this paper, we randomize H-2A seasonal visas for Mexican workers to work in the United States. We follow H-2A recruits  who did and didn’t receive the visa, alongside their households in Mexico, to understand the impact of migrating on consumption, investment decisions, individuals’ beliefs, and household dynamics.

Find out more about this and other NOVAFRICA seminars here.

You can join via Zoom from anywhere!