Return migration and provincial wellbeing in Türkiye, at ERSA 2025

2025 September 22

At the 64th ERSA Congress Regional Science in Turbulent Times (ERSA 2025), held in Athens on 26-29 August, Dr. Ayşe Abbasoğlu Özgören presented the study “The Effect of Return Migration on Provincial Wellbeing: Evidence from Turkish returnees from Austria and the Netherlands” co-authored with Dr. Hilal Arslan, Dr. Alanur Çavlin, Dr. Peter Meister-Broekema, and Dr. Becky Arnold.

The research explores how the return of migrants from Austria and the Netherlands affects wellbeing at the provincial level in Türkiye. Unlike studies focusing solely on economic impacts, this work adopted a longitudinal framework that also included health and environmental dimensions.

Key highlights from the study

• Main drivers: Economic and health-related factors were identified as the strongest channels of improvement.


• Role of younger returnees: Descendants and younger generations of returnees were particularly influential in boosting the economic dimension.


• Regional variation: The effects were strongest in less developed provinces with higher shares of returnees, suggesting migration can serve as a tool to support regional wellbeing.


• Positive impact: Return migration was found to enhance wellbeing in Türkiye’s provinces.

What conclusions were drawn?

The study concludes that return migration contributes meaningfully to provincial wellbeing in Türkiye and that migration can play a role in addressing regional disparities. In less developed provinces with higher share of returnees, this research shows that migration can be an important tool to boost wellbeing. Policymakers should therefore recognise migration as not only a demographic trend but also a potential lever for improving socio-economic and health outcomes in regions left behind.

The session was chaired by Dr. Tomasz Komornicki, who, along with other participants, provided valuable feedback that will be incorporated as the paper develops toward publication. The congress also featured keynote lectures from leading scholars, including Dr. Paul Krugman on “Global Turbulence, Local Consequences – A New Force Field for Regional Development”, Dr. Jacques-François Thisse on “Regional Science or Spatial Economics”, and Dr. Michael Storper on “Europe's Geography Problem: Reconciling Growth with Equity.”