Migrating beyond networks: the mechanisms of sending state intervention

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article analyzes the mechanisms through which sending state policies intervene in labor migration flows. Relying primarily on data from the Philippine state’s system of overseas contract migration, this article compares the main modalities of sending state intervention with those identified by the dominant theories of migration causation – social capital/migrant networks theory, which posits that the linkages between sending and receiving countries facilitate migration flows. Sending state policiesmimic or complement the two main mechanisms of migration facilitation: risk/cost mitigation and the initiation of contacts. They offer more formalized variations of the information distribution and material support that occurs through migrant networks, and serve as a useful, and sometimes necessary, counterpart to receiving states that are seeking to solve labor market challenges or to exert more control over existing migration flows. Finally, sending state can go beyond existing linkages through the explicit targeting of particular markets and the development of domestic human capital.