Migrant Remittances Research Articles

ІНСТИТУЦІОНАЛЬНЕ ЗАБЕЗПЕЧЕННЯ ДЕРЖАВНОЇ ПОЛІТИКИ УПРАВЛІННЯ МІГРАЦІЙНИМИ ПРОЦЕСАМИ В УКРАЇНІ

This paper discusses the changes in the key factors of socioeconomic development in Ukraine related to the transition to an innovation-driven economy, the most important of which are the availability and development of human resources that Ukraine is rapidly losing in the context of intensified external migration flows. The purpose of the article is to shape an institutional support framework to facilitate government migration management policy in Ukraine. The theoretical and methodological background of the research relies on scientific advances in migration, institutional and social economics theories. The methods of generalization and synthesis used in the study allowed to formulate research findings and develop proposals. The study presents a toolkit to ensure robust government migration management policy realization in Ukraine that in the first place envisages the need to develop and implement the concept of migration services infrastructure development, programs to encourage re-emigration of student and labor migrants and attain convergence of Ukrainian legislation with legislation of major recipient countries through international social security agreements enabling migrant pension applications, deepening of the cooperation between trade unions and migrant associations in recipient countries as well as with trade unions of EU citizens to develop a mechanism to ensure social protection of migrant workers. This study suggests an effective management mechanism to provide institutional support through launching of information and resource centres under the auspices of the State Migration Service of Ukraine, ensuring successful implementation of grant programs of international organizations and funds to create structures at border service offices, further development of financial institutions (funds, unions or investment banks) to foster effective migration remittance transfers to the real sector of the economy, creating strategic alliances between international corporations and institutions of higher education.

Economic Impact of Diaspora Remittance on Nigerian Economy

The purpose of this paper is to assess the huge impact of Diaspora remittance on the Nigerian economy. In 2018, migrant remittances to Nigeria were $24.3 billion, representing 6.1% of gross domestic product. This figure represents 83% of the Federal Government budget in 2018 and 11 times the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) flows in same period. Remittances are the fastest growing source of foreign exchange earnings in Nigeria. Hence in March 2021, as part of its reforms to boost the inflow of foreign currency in the country, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) introduced an incentive of N5 for every $1 of fund remitted to Nigeria through International Money Transfer Organisations in its forex policy. Remittances, or money transfers, make up the second-largest source of foreign exchange receipts after oil revenue in Nigeria, Africa's biggest economy. $24.8billion was sent to Nigeria in 2019, according to the World Bank data.

АНАЛIЗ ЕКOНOМIКO-СТАТИСТИЧНИХ ПOКАЗНИКIВ РOЗВИТКУ ПIДПРИЄМНИЦТВА В УКРАЇНI

The purpose of the article is to statistically assess the internal indicators of small business and analytical confirmation of the identified trends in their development to ensure the objectivity of information flows on the state and role of small business in the economy of Ukraine. A modern feature of the development of entrepreneurship in the economy of Ukraine is the growth of self-employment and mass labor migration. According to the results of the static assessment, it was found that the receipt of foreign currency in the form of remittances of labor migrants became a source of formation of the foreign exchange market, as their size is 30% of revenues from exports of goods from Ukraine. However, the amount of economic losses in the economy of Ukraine due to labor migration is much higher than foreign exchange earnings and is 6 % of total sales (goods and services) in Ukraine. Small business accumulated 48 % of the total number of employees in the economy of Ukraine, which turned it into a powerful politically and socially influential formation. The economic capacity of the small business remains traditionally low. In the structure of the country's economy, small enterprises (80 % of the total number of enterprises) bring only 19 % of income to the economy. The burden of the single tax for small enterprises is identical to the burden of paying income tax on medium-sized enterprises, which indicates relatively equal tax conditions for small and medium-sized businesses in Ukraine. Responsibility and autonomy of enterprises for the development and management decisions is growing extremely nowadays, what should provide further effectiveness of their activities. Ensure effective management is possible only through a comprehensive analysis and diagnostics business enterprise that meets modern requirements of economic development. The competitive situation in which today must engage in economic activities domestic enterprises of any form of ownership and industry sector is quite unstable, shaky, unpredictable and completely devoid of adverse external factors. Therefore, the company appears quite vulnerable to unlimited competitive space, and lack of improved methods of state regulation and favorable policy protectionism deepens an already tough situation. In such circumstances, company cant relied on anyone except themselves, involving the activity of experienced professionals that can simulate variable development of the company in a competitive environment and to predict the consequences of any move made by management in the form of decisions

Migration and fuel use in rural Zambia

What is the effect of migration on fuel use in rural Zambia? Opportunities to increase income can be scarce in this setting; in response, households may pursue a migration strategy to increase resources as well as to mitigate risk. Migrant remittances may make it possible for households to shift from primary reliance on firewood to charcoal, and the loss of productive labor through migration may reinforce this shift. This paper uses four waves of panel data collected as part of the Child Grant Programme in rural Zambia to examine the connection between migration and the choice of firewood or charcoal as cooking fuel and finds evidence for both mechanisms. Importantly, this paper considers migration as a process, including out as well as return migration, embedding it in the context of household dynamics generally. Empirical results suggest that while out-migration helps move households away from firewood as a fuel source, return migration moves them back, but because the former is more common, the overall effect of migration is to shift households away from primary reliance on firewood.

Diaspora remittances and development of small and medium enterprises in Benin-City, Nigeria

The study examined diaspora remittances and the development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Benin-City. The objective of the study is to establish the impacts of diaspora remittances on the development of SMEs in Benin- City. The survey approach involved an online study. The major sources of data used were primary and secondary data. The primary data were elicited through the use of an online questionnaire. The data were analyzed and presented using a statistical technique such as tables and percentages. The secondary data adopted a longitudinal research design covering the period 1991-2018, which is readily available in World Bank data. The technique adopted is multiple regressions to test the hypothesis. E-view econometric software 8.0 was used for the analysis. The result revealed that in the long run, migrant remittance (MRI) and exchange rate (EXCR) which is a supporting variable have a positive and significant impact on the development of small and medium enterprises (DSMEs) in Nigeria. The result also revealed that most diaspora remittances are on consumption. Based on the above findings, it was recommended that the government should develop a policy framework that will harness the effort of diaspora toward the development of the economy of the state, and Edo state government should collaborate with agencies in charge of remittances to remove all encumbrances to remittances to encourage the diaspora to improve on their remittances.

COVID-19 pandemic in Africa: Is it time for water, sanitation and hygiene to climb up the ladder of global priorities?

In the current pandemic context, it is necessary to remember the lessons learned from previous outbreaks in Africa, where the incidence of other diseases could rise if most resources are directed to tackle the emergency. Improving the access to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) could be a win-win strategy, because the lack of these services not only hampers the implementation of preventive measures against SARS-CoV-2 (e.g. proper handwashing), but it is also connected to high mortality diseases (for example, diarrhoea and lower respiratory infections (LRI)). This study aims to build on the evidence-based link between other LRI and WASH as a proxy for exploring the potential vulnerability of African countries to COVID-19, as well as the role of other socioeconomic variables such as financial sources or demographic factors. The selected methodology combines several machine learning techniques to single out the most representative variables for the analysis, classify the countries according to their capacity to tackle public health emergencies and identify behavioural patterns for each group. Besides, conditional dependences between variables are inferred through a Bayesian network. Results show a strong relationship between low access to WASH services and high LRI mortality rates, and that migrant remittances could significantly improve the access to healthcare and WASH services. However, the role of Official Development Assistance (ODA) in enhancing WASH facilities in the most vulnerable countries cannot be disregarded, but it is unevenly distributed: for each 50–100 US$ of ODA per capita, the probability of directing more than 3 US$ to WASH ranges between 48% (Western Africa) and 8% (Central Africa).

The gender-specific examination of migration decision-making and remittance behavior among Latvian emigrants

ABSTRACT This article stems from a gender-specific examination of migration decision-making and remittance behavior as a proxy for the creation of gendered transnational spaces when faced with macro-economic challenges in Europe. The research is quantitative and includes the analysis of 2,702 Latvian migrants in receiving countries. Gendered transnational spaces for women manifest themselves in remittance behavior and are influenced more by emotional attachment; in contrast, men are more inclined to send monetary remittances. Prior supervenience stems from emigration decision-making, where economic issues, the search for opportunities, and family and education-related aspects are all relevant to men and women respectively.

Human capital flight and output growth nexus: evidence from Nigeria

Purpose Human capital flight from developing countries to developed nations has been rising and giving concerns to governments and scholars alike. This paper aims to explore the impact migration from Nigeria has on economic output growth by focusing on the migration rate, remittances, population growth and secondary school enrolment. This has not received adequate attention in the literature, as many papers have primarily focused on the impact of remittances on economic growth. Design/methodology/approach Leveraging on the macro-level approach to migration, remittances and the economy, this research considers the nexus among the human capital flight and output growth variables by using the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) method of analysis for time series data between 1986 and 2018. Findings The net migration rate from Nigeria was found from the empirical analysis to be more disadvantageous for the economy, given its negative relationship with economic growth despite the large volume of foreign incomes (remittances). It also shows that secondary school enrolment positively and significantly impacted the Nigerian growth rate in the long run. Originality/value This research has widened the use of variables by combining net migration rate, remittances from abroad, population growth rate and secondary school enrolment to obtain a more robust outcome with implications for research and practice.

The impact of external funding flow on Jordan’s GDP (1997-2017)

The main objective of this study is to investigate the impact of external funding flow on Jordan’s GDP (1997 – 2017) focusing on variables such as; grants (GR), soft loans (LN), foreign direct investment (FDI), and the Jordanian migrant worker's remittances (JMWR) on Jordan's GDP which represent the dependent variable through using the E -Views statistical program and multiple regressions analysis. Previous studies showed the significant and non-significant impacts of the flow of external funding on the economy. In this study the researchers analyzed the impact of external funding flow on Jordan's GDP for the period (1997-2017) and found that grants (GR) and foreign direct investment (FDI) have a statistically significant impact on Jordan's GDP; in contrast, soft loans (LN) and the Jordanian migrant’s worker’s remittances (JMWR) have no statistically significant impact on Jordan's GDP for the same period. This study filled the gap and expanded the analysis to test whether there is an impact of grants independently of the soft loans on Jordan’s GDP and vice versa, in addition, the study investigated the impact of other variables such as; foreign direct investment (FDI), and the Jordanian migrant worker's remittances (JMWR).

Migrant Remittances and Violent Responses to Crime in Latin America and the Caribbean

ABSTRACTHigh levels of crime are a key driver of emigration from Latin America and the Caribbean. But can emigration change public opinion about how best to respond to crime? Focusing on the political economy of remittances—the money migrants send to their families and communities—this study argues that emigration can increase support for violent responses to crime. Migrants’ families often spend remittances on investment goods, which makes them more vulnerable to crime and more supportive of violence to protect themselves. An analysis of AmericasBarometer data finds that remittance recipients are more likely both to fear crime and to be victims of crime than nonrecipients. They are also more approving of vigilantism, more tolerant of police bending the law to apprehend criminals, and more supportive of deploying the military in crime fighting. These findings contribute to our knowledge of the consequences of international migration for political development in migrant-sending countries.

THE INTERACTIVE EFFECTS OF REMITTANCES ON ECONOMIC GROWTH AND INEQUALITY IN WESTERN BALKAN COUNTRIES

Hardly any studies have investigated the impact of migrant remittances on economic growth (EG) and inequality in the Western Balkans as a whole (WB6). Using the method of instrumental variables (VI), the findings show that while remittances influence economic growth, their inflow also promotes a high level of migration and absorbs a large workforce by influencing the labor market and encouraging uncontrolled individual relocation. This paper also reveals that although remittances have eased income inequalities the share of remittances in a country’s economy has declined over the years. After testing for the endogeneity of remittances and controlling for various variables, the results indicate that migrant workers’ remittances do not provide strong support for economic growth and inequality. For the sample average, a 1-percent rise in the share of remittances in the economy (i.e., to GDP) will lead to a 0.10-percent rise in the economic cycle i.e. GDP growth, respectively will lead to a 0.05-percent drop in the share of people living in inequality. The findings also show that the interactive effect of remittances and foreign direct investment is lower on economic growth and inequality than the individual effect of each factor.

Remittances, ethnic diversity, and entrepreneurship in developing countries

This paper examines the moderating influence of home-country ethnic diversity in the relationship between migrant remittances and new business creation in developing countries. By employing the theories of transaction cost, social network, social identity, and trust, we argue that ethnic diversity is negatively associated with new business creation; nevertheless, it strengthens the positive association between migrant remittances and new business creation in developing countries. We test our hypotheses on 64 developing countries over an 11-year period (2006–2016). This paper contributes to entrepreneurship literature by emphasizing the importance of home-country ethnic diversity in channeling migrants’ remittances to new business creation in developing countries. Plain English Summary Ethnic diversity leads to a stronger positive link between remittances and new business creation in developing countries. We show that higher remittance-receiving countries create a higher number of new firms on average. Furthermore, this positive relationship is stronger in countries with ethnically diverse societies. Our results underline the importance of the ethnic structure of the country for entrepreneurship and economic development.

Migrants’ remittances and economic growth in Egypt: an empirical analysis from 1980 to 2017

Purpose Migrants’ remittances to Egypt have increased considerably in both size and importance over the past 40 years. This increase has made Egypt one of the top remittance recipients in the world and the leading recipient country in the Middle East. As migrant remittances are one of Egypt's main sources of foreign capital, this study aims to identify the impact of these remittances on economic growth. Design/methodology/approach The study collects annual data on migrant remittances sent to Egypt during the period 1980–2017. The study uses the Augmented Dickey–Fuller test and Johnsen's Co-integration test to establish long-run relationships between variables. Then, a vector error correction model (VECM) is used to combine long-run and short-run dynamics, and a Granger causality test is performed. Finally, diagnostic tests of the VECM are conducted. Findings Results reveal that migrants’ remittances to Egypt are countercyclical in the sense that they have a long-term negative impact on economic growth. These results are determined by the Granger causality between migrants' remittances, inflation rate and imports. Practical implications The study can help policymakers to develop appropriate policies to turn migrants' remittances into a reliable source of capital that could result in a stable economic growth. Originality/value Although various empirical studies have examined the growth effect of remittances, most of them are based on cross-country data. This study contributes to the field by attempting to close a gap in the literature by empirically analyzing the impact of remittances on a single country over a long period.

Socio-economic and Demographic Analysis of International Migration from Rural Punjab: A Case Study of Patiala District

Based on the primary data covering the period 1951-2019, the study highlights the problems of Brain Drain, Capital Drain, and Loss of Demographic Dividend. As many as 96.62 percent of the people migrated from the age group of 15 to 45 years. Most of the youngsters were migrating just after completing secondary level education. Unemployment, desire to earn more, better living conditions and good administration at the destination, and peer pressure were the main reasons for the migration of the people from rural Punjab. Two-thirds of the migrants sent no remittances to their families. Due to the high cost of migration and low remittances, two-thirds of the households were under debt.

Studying the flip side of migrant remittances: A panel cointegration analysis of 18 selected Asian countries

This study is an attempt to gauge the effect of remittances on Real Effective Exchange Rate (REER) with the help of a panel of 18 selected Asian countries. The period considered for this study is from 1998 to 2016. To achieve the objective of the study, along with Pedroni panel cointegration technique, ‘Fully Modified Ordinary Least Square’ and ‘Dynamic Ordinary Least Square’ methods were applied. The results of the study suggest that remittances exert upward pressure on REER. In case of both the estimators (FMOLS and DOLS), the coefficient of remittances is negative and statistically significant at 1% level. Impulse response functions (IRFs) derived from the Panel Vector Auto Regressive model (PVAR) exhibits similar kind of results. The results obtained from this study raise the concerns similar to the ones raised by the Dutch disease or discoveries of natural resources leading to the appreciation of REER.

Re-branding remittance fee reduction policy goals: from combating terrorist financing to poverty alleviation

ABSTRACT After the 2001 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York, attention to informal migrant remittance flows were increasingly seen as a tool for terrorism financing due to their lack of oversight. After increased regulation was deemed to have the adverse impact of reducing the appeal of formal alternatives, security scholars and practitioners resorted to formalisation policies through transfer fee reductions that make formal options more accessible. In international development circles, similar policies gained traction. International commitments, such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 10c) and objective 20 of the 2018 Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, aim to lower transfer fees to promote remittance growth and alleviate poverty. This article scrutinises the shift in remittance policy framing, primarily driven by security concerns, to promote development. Findings suggest the 9/11 terrorist attacks provided the punctuation that gave institutions the policy tractability to act upon pre-existing privatisation motives within Bretton-Woods institutions. The findings contribute to the understanding of policy creation and the cross-pollination of policies in the security-development space.

The migration motive and transnational engagement nexus. A case study of transnational families between Cuba and Germany

ABSTRACT This article examines the impact of migration and transnational families on social transformations in the country of origin. It links the analysis of structural forces such as economic, political and social transformations that promote emigration with family-household strategies, and simultaneously analyses the impact of migrants’ transnational activities on social transformation in the country of origin. Based on a biographical, family-historical, multi-sited study on migration and transnational families between Cuba and Germany, I develop a typology, which shows how the impact on the sending society is linked to the transnational engagement and remittances of migrants, which in turn is linked to the migration motive. Cuba, as a developing country in a process of socioeconomic transformation shaped by emigration and dependence on migrants’ economic remittances, provides an especially interesting regional context in which to explore the impact of migration on social transformations. This theoretical model, which describes the nexus between migration motive and transnational engagement, provides new explanations for the interconnectedness of migration motives, transnational engagement and social change in the country of origin. This leads to an improved understanding of the impact of migration on social transformations and of transnational families as agents of social change in the country of origin.

Does Foreign Capital Really Matter for Employment? Evidence from Agricultural Dominance African Countries

This paper examines the impacts of foreign capitals (FDI, migrant remittances, and agricultural aid) on overall and sectoral employment using a simple labor demand model for a panel of 43 African countries from 2002 to 2018. Our econometric investigation reveals the presence of cross-section dependence and a long-run relationship among variables. Using the dynamic ordinary least square (DOLS), the augmented mean group (AMG), and the common correlated effects means group (CCEMG) methods, we find that only migrant remittances and FDI positively affect total employment. Still, FDI has a positive significant effect on agriculture, industry, and service employment. Our findings also indicate that migrant remittances reduce employment in agriculture and increase job creation in the service and industry sectors. Finally, aid to agriculture does not contribute to job creation in African countries and even negatively affects industry employment. This study supports the view that migrant remittances contribute to transforming the employment structure in Africa countries. Some recommendations are proposed.

ВЛИЯНИЕ ВНЕШНЕЙ ТРУДОВОЙ ЭМИГРАЦИИ НА РЫНОК ТРУДА ТАДЖИКИСТАНА

The article examines the factors and scale of labor emigration from Tajikistan to Russia. As well as the impact on the GDP of Tajikistan of remittances from Russia of Tajik labor migrants and their role in the formation of the labor market and the creation of new jobs in the Republic of Tajikistan. Traditionally, the main directions of labor migration for citizens of Tajikistan in recent years have been and remain the Russian Federation, the Republic of Kazakhstan and some CIS countries. There is no need for citizens of Tajikistan to obtain visas to these countries, since there is an agreement on a visa-free regime between Tajikistan and the CIS countries. The role of Tajik migrants' remittances in the socio-economic development of Tajikistan, including households and individual regions, is very large, and Tajikistan is among the leading countries in the world with a high share of migrant remittances in the gross domestic product. Russia remains the main channel of emigration for Tajiks, and it is from Russia that most of the remittances of Tajik emigrants are sent. The motivating factor for the transfer of funds is the fact that migrants take care of their family, loved ones, those left at home: spouses, children, parents and members of wider family and social circles.

Messages, Money, and Messengers: Do Migrant Remittances Strengthen Corporate Governance in Developing Countries?

Messages, Money, and Messengers: Do Migrant Remittances Strengthen Corporate Governance in Developing Countries?