International Migration, Self-employment and Restructuring through Tourism in Sparsely Populated Areas

Abstract

Previous research has shown that different forms of migration in general, and tourism-related international migration in particular, could act as potential drivers for various forms of rural transformations. This paper investigates self-employment in tourism among foreign-born people in rural Sweden. The questions addressed in this paper are: What is the magnitude of self-employment, and what types of business do in-migrants run, in rural areas? A discussion on the extent to which in-migrants to rural areas contribute to rural restructuring through self-employment in tourism follows. The results are analyzed by drawing on theories connected to restructuring and ideas of the "new economy". The longitudinal, individual and geo-referenced database ASTRID with official Swedish register data is used to identify foreign-born people self-employed in tourism in Sweden. Selfemployment is more common for in-migrants coming from culturally proximate Western countries, followed by Asia and the Middle East. The length of time in Sweden plays a significant role in the incidence of self-employment in tourism, with restaurants dominating as the type of establishment. It can be discussed how much restaurants help invigorate the economy of rural areas, and how much they contribute to rural change and transformation in qualitative terms.

Sustainability and the Tourism and Hospitality Workforce: A Thematic Analysis

“…An appropriately-skilled labor supply in rural and remote areas is already a challenge for tourism operators [67,68]. Projected trends will only exacerbate the situation further [69,70].…”

Globalising Swedish countrysides? A relational approach to rural immigrant restaurateurs with refugee backgrounds

“…However, some overall key findings can be identified, which complement previous broader quantitative analyses relating to rural restaurants (e.g. Lundmark et al 2014) and refugees' post-migration residential decisions in Sweden (e.g. Aradhya et al 2017).…”

“…However, an increased concentration of immigrants and their businesses in Swedish urban areas has led to tough competition in the restaurant sector (Najib 2008;Lundmark et al 2014), and resulted in immigrant business start-ups in rural areas. Hence, many immigrants with refugee backgrounds include both urban and rural places in their social and business networks after arriving in Sweden.…”

“…they run a restaurant as part of the tourism-related sector) (Lundmark et al 2014). Compared with, for example, agriculture and forestry, business ventures in the restaurant sector require low investment in terms of rent, maintenance, and social and human capital-related start-up thresholds (e.g.…”

“…level of education, knowledge of market conditions, or language skills), which facilitates, for example, the pizzeria as an immigrant business (Katila & Wahlbeck 2011;Lundmark et al 2014). Immigrants who operate small restaurants such as pizzerias contribute to rural restructuring and transnational socio-economic dynamics by creating employment opportunities, diversifying local business structures, and increasing localities' overall attractiveness to tourists and residents (Najib 2008;Hedberg et al 2012), which can have positive effects in terms of tax income generation, local place image, and the renovation of old buildings (Najib 2008;Stenbacka 2013;Lundmark et al 2014).…”