Migrant Remittances and Food Security in Sub-Saharan Africa: The Role of Income Classifications

Abstract

The pervasiveness of food insecurity in sub-Saharan Africa and other developing regions has resulted in increased emigration not only to wealthier countries within the continent but also to developed countries elsewhere in the world. A growing body of research has examined the welfare implications of remittances from international migrants for families left behind. A strand of that literature focuses on the association between international remittances and household food security. We contribute to this body of work by examining the variability of this relationship across three groupings of African countries, based on the World Bank's income classifications. Using data from the Afrobarometer Surveys, our results from an instrumental variable ordered probit regressions reveal that international remittances are positively and significantly correlated with household food security for all three country groupings. After correcting for endogeneity, we find that remittance-receiving households were 83.59 percent, 72.66 percent, and 26.06 percent more likely to report having never gone without enough food to eat in low-income, lower-middle income, and upper-middle income countries in sub-Saharan Africa, respectively. These findings suggest that central governments and policymakers in Africa should reform public policy in a way that strengthens the effectiveness and efficiency of international remittances transfer to reduce food insecurity across the continent.