Abstract
This paper analyses the effects of food crises on forced international migration (FIM) flows using a structural gravity model, thereby testing the influence of liquidity constraints in the context of heterogeneous migration costs and economic resources of potential migrants. We construct a dataset that measures food crises’ severity, intensity, and causes. Our results suggest that food crises increase forced international migration. While mild food crises skew international migrants to developed and nonneighbouring countries, more severe events divert them to closer destinations. The results indicate that food crises tighten liquidity constraints on migration, and this worsens as they intensify. Under more severe food crises, migrants may lack the necessary resources to afford the higher costs of migrating internationally, particularly to a developed nation, thus choosing a closer destination or migrating internally.