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migrant workers and their families to become more active in domestic capital markets as “investors.” The “income security” of migrant households and “development priorities” of government should, wherever possible, be kept separate. Research on the gendered use of remittances under conditions of temporary migration is still in its infancy. For migrants originating from patriarchal societies, gendered patterns of remittance control and use need to be further investigated to thoroughly assess the impact of remittances on development. This study offers insights into gender dimensions of remittance use, but more empirically based research is needed in the field. The case of Asia shows that patterns in sending remittances are complex and not completely dependent on global economic changes (Skeldon 2010). First, labor markets in receiving countries largely influence whether economic downturns affect remittances. The case of the Philippines has shown that the high demand in the domestic and heath care sectors was maintained in 2008 and 2009, despite massive layoffs in other work sectors (Riester 2009). Likewise, migrants from South Asia working in the Gulf region experienced limited consequences of the economic crisis because oil-producing countries maintained their growth (Skeldon 2010). In this context, migrant workers did not return in large numbers, and recruitment figures were maintained, and so remittances continued to flow. During economic downturns, migrants also use contingency plans. Because of their families’ daily dependence on remittances, migrants resort to various strategies to avoid interrupting the flow of remittances, such as sending savings and finding employment in the shadow economy (Ullah 2010). All the above processes are gendered, and a comprehensive gendered analysis of the impact of the 2008 economic crisis on migrants and remittance flows remains to be done.
Notes 1.
Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training, Bangladesh: This agency is responsible for record keeping and granting permission to overseas job seekers at the final stage of migration.
2.
http://www.bmet.org.bd/BMET/viewStatReport.action?reportnumber=3.
3.
http://www.bangladesh-bank.org/econdata/wagermidtl.php.
4.
http://www.bmet.org.bd/BMET/viewStatReport.action?reportnumber=3.
5.
In major labor-receiving countries in the Gulf countries, migrant workers are usually issued work permits for two to three years with an option for renewal subject to the availability of the job. In the sample, migrants who were working in the United Arab Emirates for at least one year were interviewed.
6.
http://www.bbs.gov.bd/dataindex/census/bang_atg.pdf.
7.
http://www.bbs.gov.bd/dataindex/stat_bangladesh.pdf.
8.
Because migrant workers were usually issued work permits for two to three years and our respondents were working in the United Arab Emirates for more than one year but less than three years, we refer to “near past” as the first one or two years of a contract and “near future” as the remainder of the contract, which may be one or two years depending on the timing of the interview and the length of the contract.