Enabling capabilities: the role of social capital in human mobility in Ethiopia

This study examines the role of social capital in enabling migration in Hadiya and Wolaita, and among migrants in Addis Ababa, drawing on Sen’s capability approach. Using a mixed-methods design, including household and individual surveys, focus groups, and key informant interviews, we explore how bonding and bridging social capital convert mobility as a capability into meaningful choices, outcomes, and achieved functionings. Migration is a collective, household-embedded strategy, primarily driven by environmental stressors in Hadiya and economic constraints in Wolaita, though both factors affect each region. Families mobilise resources through asset sales, borrowing, and savings, while remittances and formal finance access remain limited. Social capital both enables and constrains mobility, functioning as a safety net and a source of obligation. Policy implications include strengthening accurate migration information, reducing household indebtedness through building trust in formal support systems, and recognising bridging social capital as a key conversion factor to promote safer migration.