IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/ece/dispap/2008_5.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Remittance Flows in the Transition Economies: Levels, Trends, and Determinants

Author

Listed:
  • Robert Shelburne

    (United Nations Economic Commission for Europe)

  • Jose Palacin

    (United Nations Economic Commission for Europe)

Abstract

Migrant remittances are an increasingly important source of income for the transition economies. For many of these economies, remittances are the largest type of international financial inflow and are larger than either capital inflows or official development assistance. These remittance inflows have allowed domestic consumption and investment to be substantially higher than what would have been possible otherwise and have contributed significantly to the developmental prospects of the transition economies. In addition, the outflow of labor from these economies has helped to relieve chronically high unemployment which has characterized many of them since the transition process began in the early 1990s; given these labor market conditions, the opportunity costs of this migrant outflow has therefore probably been quite low. This paper begins by describing the magnitude of these flows and their trends over time for the different transition economies; next, the differences and similarities between remittances flows to the transition economies and to the other developing and emerging markets are explored. The use of migrant labor and their ability to transfer funds safely and efficiently back home raises a number of policy issues that are also discussed. A number of policy recommendations are provided in order to improve the efficiency of the entire process, increase its developmental impact, while also addressing some welfare and equity issues regarding the migrants. Next the geographical source and destination of the remittances of the transition economies explored. Some new empirical relationships are uncovered. The accuracy of official estimates for remittance flows that appear in the balance of payments statistics have been questioned by numerous experts, and the analysis of these flows in the transition economies suggests that these problems are likely to be similarly important for the transition economies. Some new procedures are discussed for improving this data and a new technique for estimating the level of remittance inflows for the CIS economies is presented.

Suggested Citation

  • Robert Shelburne & Jose Palacin, 2008. "Remittance Flows in the Transition Economies: Levels, Trends, and Determinants," ECE Discussion Papers Series 2008_5, UNECE.
    • Handle: RePEc:ece:dispap:2008_5
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.unece.org/fileadmin/DAM/oes/disc_papers/ECE_DP_2008-5.pdf
    File Function: First version, 2008
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jose Palacin & Robert Shelburne, 2005. "The Private Housing Market in Eastern Europe and the CIS," ECE Discussion Papers Series 2005_5, UNECE.
    2. Richard H. Adams, Jr. & John Page, 2003. "International migration, remittances, and poverty in developing countries," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3179, The World Bank.
    3. Ralph Chami & Connel Fullenkamp & Samir Jahjah, 2005. "Are Immigrant Remittance Flows a Source of Capital for Development?," IMF Staff Papers, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 52(1), pages 55-81, April.
    4. McCormick, Barry & Wahba, Jackline, 2000. "Overseas Employment and Remittances to a Dual Economy," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 110(463), pages 509-534, April.
    5. Alvin P. Ang, 2007. "Workers’ Remittances and Economic Growth in the Philippines," DEGIT Conference Papers c012_029, DEGIT, Dynamics, Economic Growth, and International Trade.
    6. World Bank, 2006. "Tajikistan Policy Note : Enhancing the Development Impact of Remittances," World Bank Publications - Reports 19457, The World Bank Group.
    7. Schrooten, Mechthild, 2006. "Workers' Remittances to Former Soviet States," Discussion Paper Series a476, Institute of Economic Research, Hitotsubashi University.
    8. Ali Mansoor & Bryce Quillin, 2007. "Migration and Remittances : Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 6920, December.
    9. James Korovilas, 1999. "The Albanian Economy in Transition: The Role of Remittances and Pyramid Investment Schemes," Post-Communist Economies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 11(3), pages 399-415.
    10. Robert Shelburne & Jose Palacin, 2007. "Remittances in the CIS: Their Economic Implications and a New Estimation Procedure," ECE Discussion Papers Series 2007_5, UNECE.
    11. Mr. Robert M Burgess & Mr. V. Haksar, 2005. "Migration and Foreign Remittances in the Philippines," IMF Working Papers 2005/111, International Monetary Fund.
    12. Robert Shelburne & Oksana Pidufala, 2006. "Evolving Trade Patterns in the CIS: The Role of Manufacturing," International Trade and Finance Association Conference Papers 1078, International Trade and Finance Association.
    13. Mark G. Herander & Luz A. Saavedra, 2005. "Exports and the Structure of Immigrant-Based Networks: The Role of Geographic Proximity," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 87(2), pages 323-335, May.
    14. Peridy Nicolas J, 2006. "Welfare Magnets, Border Effects or Policy Regulations: What Determinants Drive Migration Flows into the EU?," Global Economy Journal, De Gruyter, vol. 6(4), pages 1-34, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Jakhongir Kakhkharov, 2017. "Remittances and household investment in entrepreneurship: The case of Uzbekistan," Discussion Papers in Finance finance:201703, Griffith University, Department of Accounting, Finance and Economics.
    2. Jakhongir Kakhkharov & Nicholas Rohde, 2020. "Remittances and financial development in transition economies," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 59(2), pages 731-763, August.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Robert Shelburne & Jose Palacin, 2007. "Remittances in the CIS: Their Economic Implications and a New Estimation Procedure," ECE Discussion Papers Series 2007_5, UNECE.
    2. Leonardo Di Marco & Olga Marzovilla & Luciano Nieddu, 2015. "The Role Of Remittances On The Business Cycle: The Case Of The Philippines," RIEDS - Rivista Italiana di Economia, Demografia e Statistica - The Italian Journal of Economic, Demographic and Statistical Studies, SIEDS Societa' Italiana di Economia Demografia e Statistica, vol. 69(3), pages 119-130, July-Sept.
    3. Kuckulenz, Anja & Buch, Claudia M., 2004. "Worker Remittances and Capital Flows to Developing Countries," ZEW Discussion Papers 04-31, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    4. Giuliano, Paola & Ruiz-Arranz, Marta, 2009. "Remittances, financial development, and growth," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(1), pages 144-152, September.
    5. Oluwasheyi S. Oladipo, 2020. "Migrant Workers' Remittances And Economic Growth: A Time Series Analysis," Journal of Developing Areas, Tennessee State University, College of Business, vol. 54(4), pages 75-88, October-D.
    6. Michael, Owiso, 2008. "Literature Review: Migration, Remittances and Development," MPRA Paper 104988, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 2008.
    7. Brian Roberts & Malgorzata Markiewitz & Marjan Nikolov & Aleksandar Stojkov, 2008. "A Study On Determinants And Trends In Remittance Flows In Macedonia," Journal Articles, Center For Economic Analyses, pages 41-61, June.
    8. Zakiyyah, Varachia, 2018. "Literature Review of Migration and Development," MPRA Paper 106444, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 2018.
    9. MITSUI, Izumi, 2019. "A Literature Review of Economic Diaspora," MPRA Paper 109115, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 2019.
    10. David, Blight, 2017. "Literature Review on International Migration: Development Perspectives," MPRA Paper 106312, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 2017.
    11. Luca Marchiori & Patrice Pieretti & Benteng Zo, 2008. "Brain Drain, Remittances, and Fertility," Economie Internationale, CEPII research center, issue 115, pages 9-42.
    12. Christidis, Les, 2008. "Literature Review on Migration and Remittances Development," MPRA Paper 105237, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 2008.
    13. Safaa Tabit & Charaf-Eddine Moussir, 2017. "Impact Of Migrants' Remittances On Economic Growth: Case Of Morocco," Post-Print hal-01449502, HAL.
    14. Carmen, Maria del, 2018. "Economic Migration and Diaspora: A Literature Review," MPRA Paper 109498, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 2018.
    15. Flippo, Behnaz, 2009. "A Literature Review: Migration and Remittances," MPRA Paper 104877, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 2009.
    16. Antonella, Barbarito, 2013. "Migration, Remittances and Development: A Literature Review," MPRA Paper 104715, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 2013.
    17. Chrząstowska, Bożena, 2010. "Migration and Remittances: A Literature Review on Remittance Behaviour," MPRA Paper 104690, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 2010.
    18. Enrique Graue, Wiechers, 2018. "A Literature Review of Economic Migration," MPRA Paper 109870, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 2018.
    19. Akasaka, Shintaro, 2016. "Theoretical Review of Migration and Development," MPRA Paper 106364, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 2016.
    20. Vitalievna Lebedeva, Elena, 2012. "Migration and Development: A Comprehensive Literature Review," MPRA Paper 104373, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 2012.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    remittances; migration; CIS; Russia; southeast Europe; EU new member states; eastern Europe; external finance; financial flows;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • P25 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Socialist and Transition Economies - - - Urban, Rural, and Regional Economics
    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
    • R31 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Real Estate Markets, Spatial Production Analysis, and Firm Location - - - Housing Supply and Markets

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ece:dispap:2008_5. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Robert Shelburne (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/eceunch.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.