International Remittances and Private Interhousehold Transfers: Exploring the Links

Y. Alem*, L. Andersson

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

We investigate the effect of international remittances from migrated family members on informal interhousehold transfers—an issue that has received limited attention in the literature. Using rich panel data from urban Ethiopia spanning 15 years, we show that receiving international remittances increases the value of private domestic interhousehold transfers, whereas receiving domestic remittances does not have any effect. We also show that the transfers sent respond to shocks to a great extent. Our results provide new evidence on the trickle-down effects of international remittances, effects important to consider when analyzing the impact of international remittances on household outcomes in recipient countries.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)902-928
Number of pages27
JournalEuropean Journal of Development Research
Volume31
Issue number4
Early online date2019
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Sept 2019

JEL classifications

  • f24 - Remittances
  • o15 - "Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration"

Keywords

  • Interhousehold transfers
  • International remittances
  • Panel data
  • Shocks
  • Urban Ethiopia
  • MIGRATION
  • PANEL
  • PERSISTENCE
  • INEQUALITY
  • RISK
  • POVERTY REDUCTION
  • INCOME
  • MOTIVES
  • CONSUMPTION
  • ALTRUISM

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