Gendering Migrant Remittances: Evidence from Bangladesh and the United Arab Emirates

Gendering Migrant Remittances: Evidencefrom Bangladesh and the United Arab

Emirates

Md Mizanur Rahman*

ABSTRACT

In this study, I explore gender dimensions of remittances under conditions of temporarymigration in Asia. This research argues that migrant remittances are influenced by notonly gender but also the context of the remittances, and that both should be integratedand elaborated to capture the complexity of remittances and their development dynam-ics. On the basis of surveys of 150 migrants in the United Arab Emirates and 100migrant households in Bangladesh, in this study I examine gender dimensions of remit-tances by linking both sending and receiving points and elaborating on four sites ofremittances, where gender matters significantly: (i) the sending process, (ii) the receiptprocess, (iii) the use and control of remittances and, finally, (iv) the implications for themigrant households. The study reveals several gender-differentiated patterns in remit-tance behaviour. Female migrants remit a greater share of their earnings than their malecounterparts; they prefer sisters to brothers and other family members to husbands,while men prefer brothers to sisters and fathers to wives – and, interestingly, it wasmales, rather than females, who remitted more to females. Women have more controlover remittances than men: in the migrant–spouse remittance route, more regular con-tact, and consultation and negotiation about management of remittances, are reported.Women show more interest in savings than men: women’s remittances tend to beinvested in human capital and those of male recipients in physical capital; more femalesplay the role of principal economic providers for the families than their malecounterparts.

INTRODUCTION

There has been a growing recognition that gender is an important factor in the migrationprocess, as almost 50 per cent of the world’s migrants are female (Donato et al., 2006; Piper,2006, 2008; Willis and Yeoh, 2000). Particularly in Asia, the feminization of labour migrationhas become a pervasive phenomenon (Esim and Smith, 2004; Gamburd, 2002; IOM, 2004;Shah, 2004): during the period from 1990 to 2005, for instance, the number of migrant work-ers in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states increased from 9 million to an estimated13 million, 29 per cent of which were females (Dito, 2008: 7). Of the many other significant

* Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore

� 2012 The AuthorPublished by Blackwell Publishing Ltd., International Migration � 2012 IOM9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK, International Migrationand 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA. ISSN 0020-7985

doi:10.1111/j.1468-2435.2012.00763.x

issues associated with international migration, remittances are of particular importance(Hugo, 2004: 90). In 2011, officially recorded remittance flows to developing countriesexceeded $350 billion and the growth of remittance flows to developing countries is expectedto reach $441 billion by 2014 (Mohapatra et al., 2011: 1).This unparalleled growth in international remittances has drawn the attention of states,

international organizations and financial institutions. In recent years, research on remittanceshas also gained momentum, resulting in a mushrooming of scientific literature in this area(for a review, see Adams et al., 2009). Existing studies on remittances tend to address remit-tances and development in developing countries. The questions that frequently appear in thecurrent literature are: (i) how to facilitate remittance transfers; and (ii) how to leverage thedevelopment potential of remittances in the developing world. To answer these questions, thecurrent literature often focuses on either the sending side or the receiving side of remittances.Gender impacts upon the process of remittances, but a stark lacuna in the current wave ofremittance research is the lack of reference to gender.In addition to gender, the nature of migration also influences the trends and impacts of

remittances at the household level. In fact, migrant remittances and their implications fordevelopment vary greatly from temporary to permanent migration, unskilled to skilled migra-tion, and South–South migration to South–North migration (Portes, 2009). Broadly, this iswhat Portes and Borocz called the ‘‘context of exit’’ and the ‘‘context of reception’’ (Portesand Borocz, 1989). For example, a general analysis of remittances without reference to con-texts and gender processes may mislead us, as motivations and implications of remittancesfrom labour-hiring countries, such as the GCC countries, are supposedly different from thosefrom Western countries, where the predominant form of migration is permanent settlement.The GCC countries are considered within the context of South–South labour migration, inwhich one of the basic motives for migrating is to send remittances to the family in the homecountry (Piper, 2005: 12). Therefore, any research on remittances should consider gender andthe temporary nature of migration, especially in the Asian migration context.In particular, in this study I examine the gender dimensions of remittances in the United

Arab Emirates (UAE) – Bangladesh remittance corridor by linking both the sending and thereceiving ends and elaborating on four sites of remittances where gender matters significantly:(i) the sending process, (ii) the receipt process, (iii) the use and control of remittances and,finally, (iv) the implications for development dynamics in the migrant households. In the con-text of remittance sending, the study scrutinizes gender and incomes, savings and remittances.In the context of remittance receiving, the research investigates the gender of recipients ofremittances, remittance control, remittance use and their implications for developmentdynamics. It is in this broader context of gender dimensions of remittances that this researchis advanced. This is indeed a relatively new methodological perspective in the study of genderand remittances, as we will see in the next section.Despite the status of the GCC countries as one of the largest receiving regions in the world

for temporary labour, migrant labour in the region is seriously under-studied. There havebeen hardly any attempts to link Asian labour-sending countries and the GCC countries, letalone a gendered study of remittance behaviour. Therefore, this study is one of the first toresearch gender and remittances in a GCC country.To set the scene, this paper is located conceptually within the ongoing debate on gendered

remittances. The imperative nature of this study also lies in the fact that although we are suf-ficiently informed about the macro-flows of remittances to sending countries, especially thesize of formal remittances, we know little about the micro-patterns of remittances and theirimplications across gender lines, insights into which this study promises to offer. Placing theremittance process within the household context enables a deeper understanding of the effectsof remittances, since what may prove to be advantageous at the national level may prove to

2 Rahman

� 2012 The Author. International Migration � 2012 IOM

be detrimental at the household level, or vice versa. Although macro-level approaches tomigration outcomes provide us with a great deal of information about national patterns andoutcomes, they are unable to shed light on what remittances mean for migrant families. Sincemigrant remittances or family remittances – that is, ‘‘transfer of money from individualmigrants to their families back home in the sending countries’’ (Goldring, 2004: 833) – areprivate money, a household ⁄ family perspective on remittances is more desirable. Moreover, asound understanding of the micro-level processes is particularly important, because theymake up the macro-level flows of remittances and the resultant developmental outcomes.In the first section I elaborate on conceptual issues related to gender and remittance pro-

cess, and this is followed by the second section on data sources and background informationabout respondents, and a discussion of Bangladesh labour migration to the UAE. The mainemphases of the subsequent sections are the contexts of remittance sending and remittancereceiving from the perspective of gender. In the final section, I summarize the findings with afocus on gender-differentiated patterns of sending, receipt, use and control of remittances,and their implications for the development dynamics of the migrant households.

CONCEPTUALIZING GENDER AND REMITTANCES UNDER CONDITIONS OF

TEMPORARY MIGRATION

Gender is a crucial factor in our understanding of the causes and consequences of interna-tional migration (Piper, 2008: 1). However, despite the growing interest in gender and migra-tion in the past decade, ‘‘a transnational space, where gender matters but which has not beenso thoroughly explored to date is remittances’’ (Mahler and Pessar, 2006: 44). There havebeen very few studies that disaggregate remittances by the sex of remitters and recipients;therefore, little empirical evidence exists on whether or not gender matters in the remittanceprocess, especially in the ability to remit, control over the remitted cash, and the use anddevelopment outcomes of remittances at the family level.Gender impacts upon the amount of money remitted, the recipients of remittances and the

uses of remittances in the development of the country of origin (see Nyberg-Sørensen, 2005).Currently, there are two strands of literature that explore differences in the remittance behav-iour of women and men and the likely impact of these differences (Amuedo-Dorantes andPozo, 2006; King et al., 2006; Osaki, 1999; Rahman and Lian, 2009). One of these strandsinvestigates the prevalence of gender influences in the share of income remitted to the familyof origin by examining the behaviour of migrants in the sending areas. The other focuses onthe impact of gender on remittances by studying data from remittance-receiving households.Some relevant issues that demand investigation in the context of sending are those that are

impacted by gender, such as earnings, savings, local expenses and the transfer of remittances.Similar issues in the context of remittance receiving are the gender of the recipients of remit-tances, remittance control, areas of near-past use of remittances, areas of near-future (poten-tial) use of remittances and the implications for development dynamics in the households.These issues are not only interrelated but also cut across gender lines.An important area of investigation in the context of the development potential of remit-

tances is investment behaviour. Much of the literature on remittances and development hasfocused on whether remittances were used on productive investment or consumption (for areview, see Papademetriou and Martin, 1991). The dominant assumption on migrant remit-tances is that they are mostly used for recurrent family expenses as ‘‘income’’ and for ‘‘con-sumption’’ (de Haas, 2005). However, there is a growing dissatisfaction with the economicconcepts of ‘‘productive’’ and ‘‘non-productive’’ use of remittances (Piper, 2009) and the use

Gendering migrant remittances: Bangladesh and the UAE 3


of the two terms in the current literature. Thus, some scholars use the terms ‘‘physicalcapital’’ and ‘‘human capital’’ instead (Salomone, 2006). Piper argues that both physical andhuman capital investment contribute to social development; for example, in the areas ofhealth, education, gender equality and democratization, and so on (Piper, 2009). It is in thissocial development context that this research is advanced.The social development potential of remittances is particularly relevant in the Asian tempo-

rary labour migration context, where families are left behind. Specific labour migration pro-grammes and policies in Asian countries are designed to ensure that the unskilled migrantworker returns to his or her country of origin, through such means as not allowing familymembers to accompany or visit the worker, tying migrants to a single employer, disallowingthem from marrying citizens and enforcing other restrictions on their rights and movements(Hugo, 2004; Lian and Rahman, 2006; Shah, 2004). However, with the maturation of thisform of labour migration in Asia, some labour-receiving countries, such as the GCC coun-tries, have already undertaken a life-cycle approach to migrant workers, which involves anextended period of employment with leave for family reunion, and skills tests and recognitionof working experiences to provide a basis for wage increments. Given this migration policyoutcome, any study on remittances should also consider these new developments in Asia.In recent years, there have no doubt been some attempts to address gender and remit-

tances. In East and South-East Asia, a few studies have attempted to analyse some aspectsof the gender dimensions of remittances (Curran, 1995; Osaki, 2003; Semyonov andGorodzeisky, 2005). However, many of these studies examine internal remittances, whilethose that study international remittances mostly focus on either the sending or the receivingpoints. Available studies such as these provide fascinating insights into different aspects ofgendered remittances. On the sending side, a frequent finding is that women are the moreconsistent remitters; they send larger amounts, and they do so more regularly than men(Semyonov and Gorodzeisky, 2005).On the receiving side, those who receive and spend remittances are usually the mothers or

other female relatives of remitting female migrants (Momsen, 1999; Rahman and Lian,2009). What is more interesting with regard to the control of remittances is that while man-agement of this income lies in the hands of the mothers, its disposal is often at the discretionof the daughters (Elmhirst, 2002; Rahman and Lian, 2009). With regard to the gendered useof remittances, women have been reported to channel remittances into better health, educa-tion and nutrition for the family, thereby supporting the development of stronger and moreproductive communities (Nyberg-Sørensen, 2005; Piper, 2005). This research sheds light onsome of these findings in the context of the UAE–Bangladesh remittance corridor.

DATA SOURCES

This paper stems from research commissioned by IOM Dhaka on gender and remittancesamong Bangladeshi migrants in the UAE. Although migrants live and work in different anddistant geographical locations, they continue to participate in family decision-making and thefamilial pooling of resources with far-away relatives. Therefore, this study relies on two-waysurveys. The importance of two-way remittance surveys lies in their potential to offer detailsabout all sites of remittances – sending, receipt, use and control, and development potential.The fieldwork was conducted in Bangladesh as well as the UAE, a destination country of sig-nificance in terms of the numbers of Bangladeshi migrants and the resultant remittanceinflows to Bangladesh. Fifty female migrant workers and 100 male migrant workers in theUAE were interviewed face-to-face between June and August 2009. Migrants who had stayed

4 Rahman


in the UAE for 1 year and remitted regularly to their households were selected for interviewsto get a clear view of the trends in the gender dimension of remittances. The two-way surveyswere complemented by participant observations and focus group discussions. Access toBangladeshi female migrants was made possible by several gatekeepers: a number of refusalsfrom female migrants were encountered, and agreement was usually only reached whenabsolute confidentiality was repeatedly assured.In general, surveys on remittances include questions on the amounts and uses of remit-

tances. Researchers who collect such data are often confronted with discrepancies betweenthe actual amount of remittances used and the amount reported to the interviewers. Natu-rally, migrant workers and households may be uncomfortable reporting the amounts anduses of remittances to outsiders. The reporting of inflated or inaccurate amounts is common,as most migrants and households do not maintain daily records of use. Given the sensitivityof the questions and the potential for biased responses, I have employed an alternative wayof collecting information on remittance use. Since I am primarily interested in pinpointingpreferential expenditures so that trends can be captured and used as a baseline, I have identi-fied areas of remittance use, especially where expenditures are recurrent even when theamount is negligible, such as in expenditure on everyday necessities. I asked respondents tolist up to five major areas of remittance use in the ‘‘near past’’ and the ‘‘near future’’. Thedocumenting of priorities and timelines in remittance use can capture the dynamics of remit-tance use under conditions of temporary migration. This alternative method of collectinginformation on the use of remittances is expected to generate more accurate data.Around 50 per cent of the male and female migrants were between the ages of 25 and 30

(Table 1). All of the female migrants were less than 40 years old, while a smaller percentageof the male migrants were above this age. In general, more married females had a tendencyto migrate relative to their male counterparts, as 68 per cent of the females were married,compared to only 51 per cent of the males. Given the cultural behaviour patterns inBangladeshi society, this finding is not surprising, as female members of the family usuallyenjoy freedom of physical mobility after marriage. On average, the size of the female migranthouseholds was 4.97 and that of the male migrant households was 4.95, while the averagehousehold size at the national level is 4.8. 1 Most migrants went to school for a good numberof years, but the male migrants tended to possess higher qualifications than the femalemigrants. Only 8 per cent of the female migrants had passed the secondary school certificate,compared to 48 per cent of the male migrants.The male migrants had also worked in the UAE for a longer period relative to their female

counterparts. Among the surveyed migrants, 59 per cent of the male migrants and 10 percent of the female migrants had been working in the UAE for 4 years or more. In terms oftype of occupation, 90 per cent of the female migrants were cleaners, 8 per cent were domes-tic workers and 2 per cent were private car drivers. Male migrants worked as constructionworkers, cleaners, agricultural workers, salesmen, tailors, drivers and in a wide variety ofother occupations (office caretakers, electricians, rent-a-car washmen, painters, carpentersand so on). About half of the male migrants interviewed were working as construction work-ers and salesmen. However, 78 per cent of the female migrants and 52 per cent of the malemigrants had not been involved in any income-generating activity in Bangladesh prior tomigration to the UAE.The second phase of the research in Bangladesh went much more smoothly in terms of

access to interviewees. A questionnaire survey was carried out among selected 50 UAEfemale and male migrant households in Bangladesh, which were selected on the basis of thefollowing criteria: (i) they had to have female or male migrants presently working in theUAE; (ii) their migrant members in the UAE must have been working for a period of 1 yearor more; and (iii) their migrant members must have remitted to their families during this



period. An interview schedule comprising both structured and unstructured questions wassurveyed among the recipients of the remittances in the selected migrant households, so thatthe findings would reflect the actual uses of remittances across gender lines.In the household survey, most members interviewed were above 40 years of age. In the

surveyed households, 52 per cent of the female migrants in the female migrant householdshad been working in the UAE for 3 years or more, and 70 per cent of the male migrants inthe male migrant households had been working in the UAE for between 1 and 3 years.According to the household survey, only 42 per cent of the female migrants were married,compared to 58 per cent of the male migrants. What is interesting is that 40 per cent of thefemale migrants were divorced or widowed, while there were no divorcees or widowers in themale migrant sample. Fifty-two per cent of the female migrants and 56 per cent of the malemigrants had children left behind. I acknowledge that the duration of the fieldwork waslimited by financial and time constraints, and that this precluded more in-depth fieldwork incertain areas.

TABLE 1

SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE OF MIGRANT WORKERS IN THE UAE, 2009

Majorcategories

Femalemigrants,

n = 50 (%)

Malemigrants,

n = 100 (%) Major categories

Femalemigrants,

n = 50 (%)

Malemigrants,

n = 100 (%)

Age of migrants Occupation prior to migration20–25 14 10 Unemployed 68 1725–30 50 51 Student 10 3530–35 32 16 Garments industry 6 –35–40 4 9 Agriculture – 1640 and above 3 3 Business – 13Missing data 11 Other economic activities 16 19Marital status Occupation in UAEMarried 68 51 Cleaner 90 25Unmarried 32 48 Driver 2 5Missing data 1 Domestic worker 8 –Religion Construction worker – 7Muslim 96 96 Agricultural worker – 5Hindu 2 3 Salesman – 24Christian 2 – Tailor – 10Missing data – 1 Other – 24Level ofeducation

Number of family members

1–5 years 58 19 Less than 3 26 286–10 years 24 32 4–5 46 38SSC 4 30 6–8 16 23HSC 4 12 9–10 – 3Graduate – 6 11 and above – 8No schooling 6 1 Missing data 12 –Missing data 4 – Duration of stay in UAEPrincipaleconomicproviders forfamilies

1–2 years 42 3

Migrants 62 43 2–4 years 48 38Others in thefamily

34 57 4–6 years 6 17

Missing data 4 – 6 years and above 4 42

6 Rahman


BANGLADESHI LABOUR MIGRATION TO THE UAE

The United Arab Emirates (UAE), a federation of seven emirates, became an independentnation in 1971 and within a short period of time, oil has made the federation one of the rich-est countries in the world. Under the leadership of its founding leader, the late Sheikh Zayedbin Sultan Al-Nahyan, the UAE enjoyed political stability and a pragmatic public policyframework. The UAE has taken the lead in developing a life-cycle approach to migrantworkers, which involves government-to-government cooperation to deal with recruitment,work abroad, preparation for return and the reintegration of guest workers. In its movetowards active bilateral cooperation with labour-sending countries, the UAE has signed atleast five Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) to date, with Nepal, India, Pakistan,Bangladesh and Sri Lanka (Khonder, 2008). An MOU signed with Bangladesh in May 2007aims at protecting Bangladeshi migrants from being overcharged by agents in both countries.Bangladesh is a major labour emigrant country (Moses, 2009): the number of migrants

leaving Bangladesh averaged 250,000 a year between 2001 and 2005, rose to almost 400,000in 2006 and doubled to 832,600 in 2007. The numbers for Bangladeshi labour migration tothe UAE have been on the rise since 2006 (Figure 1). There is no accurate data on the totalnumber of Bangladeshi migrants in the UAE, as the Bureau of Manpower, Employment andTraining (BMET), the government body in charge of monitoring emigration fromBangladesh, does not maintain records of returnees. According to one source, about 700,000Bangladeshi migrants were working in the UAE in 2007 (Migration News, 2007).A significant number of Bangladeshi women have emigrated to the GCC states for work.

However, until recently, many women from Bangladesh were not even legally permitted tomigrate abroad for work. In 1997, the government banned the expatriation of all unskilledand semi-skilled female labour, following increasing reports of exploitation and abuse ofBangladeshi nationals overseas. The government relaxed the ban later, in response to feed-back from many organizations that the ban increased the risk of trafficking of women, andfinally revoked it in 2003. The government now stipulates a number of mandatory forms ofprotection for female labour, including training courses to educate women about cultural and

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

300,000

350,000

400,000

450,000

1976

1978

1980

1982

1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

2000

2002

2004

2006

2008

FIGURE 1

BANGLADESHI LABOUR MIGRATION TO THE UAE, 1976–2009

Source: Prepared from data found on the government website http://probashi.gov.bd (accessed March

2010).



working conditions abroad, and requires recruiting agencies to compensate female workers inthe event of exploitation or lost wages.The data on female migration from Bangladesh is scarce and the official estimates often

belie the reality, mainly due to the undocumented nature of migration. Although Bangladeshifemale migrants are spread over 21 countries worldwide, their representation is negligiblecompared with other countries in Asia. Officially, only 17,784 women migrated between 1991and 2003, less than 1 per cent of the total labour migration during that period (Ullah, 2007).According to recent BMET2 statistics, 124,273 female migrants went abroad for workbetween 1991 and 2009 – and for the UAE alone, the figure for the same period was 35,630.In 2009, 6,095 females went to the UAE for work. They work primarily in the cleaning sec-tor, in domestic work and in the manufacturing sector. The amounts of annual remittancesfrom the UAE have concomitantly increased steadily since 1991, due to the growth of theBangladeshi migrant population over the period. According to the central bank of Bangla-desh, the Bangladesh Bank, Bangladeshi migrants remitted US$6,382.44 million from theUAE between 1991 and 2008 (Figure 2).

GENDER DIMENSIONS OF REMITTANCE SENDING

Incomes, savings and remittances

Table 2 presents migrants’ incomes, savings, local expenses and remittances across genderlines. Ninety-four per cent of females earned wages of between AED 500 and AED 700(US$137–190),3 while 84 per cent of males earned above AED 700 (US$190). The averageearnings were AED 786 (US$214) for females and AED 1,383 (US$376) for males, indicatingthat a male migrant’s wage was 1.75 times higher than that of a female migrant. However,given the small sample size and differential occupations for male and female migrants, it isnot possible to directly establish any gender inequality of wages. However, some female and

0200400600800

1,0001,2001,4001,6001,8002,000

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

-

US

$ M

illion

s

FIGURE 2

INFLOWS OF REMITTANCES FROM THE UAE TO BANGLADESH, 1991–2009 SOURCE: COMPILED

FROM DATA FOUND IN VARIOUS BANGLADESH GOVERNMENT

Sources: http://www.bmet.org.bd/report.html (accessed 3 May 2012) and http://www.bangladesh-bank.org/

econdata/wagermidtl.php (accessed 3 May 2012).

8 Rahman


male migrants reported differential wages for the same occupation, especially in the cleaningsector.With regard to monthly savings, 96 per cent of the females saved only between AED 300

and 500 (US$82 and US$137), while 77 per cent of males saved more than AED 700(US$191) in a month. Average monthly savings for females and males were AED 498(US$136) and AED 944 (US$257), respectively. Thus, a female migrant saved almost 52 percent of her earnings, while a male migrant saved 68 per cent of his earnings in a month. Inother words, the ratio of savings of females to those of males was 1:1.89. However, the dif-ferential saving rates are due to the fact that male migrants had the capability to save moresince they earned more. The average monthly expenses for men and women were also investi-gated in order to identify the existence of any gender-differentiated patterns in local expenses.The average monthly expenses were AED 291 (US$80) for females and AED 414 (US$112)for males, indicating that female migrants spent less per month than their male counterparts,so that they could save more from their comparatively low wages. In other words, womenwere in fact more frugal than men with regard to local expenses.As it is not a common practice among migrant workers throughout Asia to remit every

month because of high remittance fees, it is not possible to offer a monthly remittance figure.Considering the general pattern of remittances, this study investigates remittance behaviourin the 3 months before the period of interview. On average, a female migrant remitted AED1,691 (US$460) during her last remittance, while a male migrant remitted AED 2,018(US$550). Thus, it is clear that female migrants remitted less than male migrants in terms ofthe total amount of remittances. However, when the proportions of wages and remittancesare considered, an interesting trend surfaces in that, despite their lower wages, females tendedto remit more than males in terms of the share of wages remitted. On average, a femalemigrant remitted an amount 2.15 times her monthly wages, while a male migrant remitted1.46 times his monthly wages. This field evidence on the sending of remittances fully supportsfindings from other remittance surveys reported earlier in this paper.Overall, migrants tended to remit almost regularly irrespective of gender. Seventy-eight per

cent of females remitted once or twice in 3 months, compared to 65 per cent of males, with a

TABLE 2

MONTHLY EARNINGS AND SAVINGS, AND REMITTANCES PER TRANSFER BY GENDER IN THE

UAE, 2009

Amounts(AED)

Female migrant workers, n = 50 Male migrant workers, n = 100

Monthlyearnings

(%)

Monthlysavings

(%)

Remittancesper transfer

(%)

Monthlyearnings

(%)

Monthlysavings

(%)

Remittancesper

transfer (%)

300–500 2 96 14 1 23 3500–700 94 4 10 15 18 24700–900 4 – 0 19 20 6900–1,100 – – 32 13 9 141,100–1,300 – – 2 13 9 91,300–1,500 – – 10 10 11 1Above 1,500 – – 32 28 8 43Missing data – – – 1 –Mean AED 786

(US$214monthlyearnings)

AED 498(US$136 and51.95% ofearnings)

AED 1,691(US$460 and2.15 timesearnings)

AED 1,383(US$376monthlyearnings)

AED 944(US$257and 68.23%of earnings)

AED 2,018(US$550and 1.46timesearnings)



small percentage even remitting once every month. Thus, women tended to maintain morefrequent economic contact with their left-behind families than men did. However, this couldalso be due to the fact that female migrants remitted relatively smaller amounts than theirmale counterparts, and thus had to remit more frequently to provide economic support fortheir families back home; while males, on the other hand, probably did not need to do so.

Channels of remittances

Remittance channels constitute an important part of remittances. Broadly, we can identifytwo types of funds transfer channels used by migrants globally: formal and informal chan-nels. Within formal channels, the institutions involved in money transfers are supervised bygovernment agencies and laws that determine their creation, characteristics, operations andclosure (APEC, 2003: 3). In general, formal systems include banks, postal services, moneytransfer operators (MTOs) and other wire transfer services and card-based money transfers(credit and debit cards). By contrast, an informal funds transfer channel ‘‘exists and operatesoutside of (or parallel to) conventional regulated banking and financial channels’’ (Buencami-no and Gorbunov, 2002: 1). Among informal fund transfers, hundi is a popular informalfunds transfer system among Bangladeshi migrant workers in the UAE. The hundi is informalbut highly organized, and reliability, credibility and efficiency are essential ingredients to hundibusiness. In hundi, there is almost no fee for remittances. Rahman and Yeoh argue that thehundiwalas (operators of hundi) often enjoy non-economic pay-offs in terms of increased socialstatus and power in the migrants’ communities of origin, over and above economic profitsresulting from the social bases of sustainability of the system (Rahman and Yeoh, 2008).The use of remittance channels also varies along gender lines. All of the female migrants

remitted through formal channels, with an exception of 2 per cent who used both formal andinformal channels. In the case of male migrants, 67 per cent used only formal channels, 15per cent used only informal channels and 18 per cent used both formal and informal chan-nels. There were no cases of females using solely informal channels. In other words, 33 percent of the males used both informal and formal channels compared with 2 per cent of thefemales. Thus, females had a greater tendency than males to remit through formal channels.One of the principal reasons why female migrants use formal channels is to avoid the malecontact that is necessary when patronizing the hundi’s services. Most female migrants areaware of the fact that migration signifies a threat to women’s virtue and thus the honour ofthe family (Dannecker, 2009). To most male migrants, female migration is still not a desiredact and female migrants are perceived negatively, as women who lead a loose lifestyle.Caught in such a social stigma, females usually avoid Bangladeshi males and male gatheringplaces such as the popular Sunday afternoon venues in the various parts of the cities. Never-theless, this does not mean that female migrants live in complete isolation, as they have theirown networks and parallel recreational spots, usually on the premises of shopping malls. OnSundays, Bangladeshi women can be seen in these shopping malls mingling with otherwomen from Bangladesh.

GENDER DIMENSIONS OF REMITTANCE RECEIVING

Recipients of remittances

As recipients are usually entrusted with the management of remittances, the gender of recipi-ents is crucial for an in-depth understanding of remittances and family dynamics. Thus both

10 Rahman


surveys noted the gender of the remittance recipients (Table 3). In the household survey inBangladesh, the largest group of remittance recipients was the fathers of both the female andthe male migrant workers. Married female and male migrants also preferred remitting tofathers rather than to spouses. While 42 per cent of the female migrants and 58 per cent ofthe male migrants were married, only 22 per cent and 24 per cent, respectively, of theirspouses were recipients. Female migrants tended to remit to their sisters while male migrantsdid so to their brothers. Interestingly, more male migrants than females chose to remit totheir mothers. In short, 78 per cent and 22 per cent of female migrants remitted to male andfemale members, respectively, while 56 per cent and 44 per cent of male migrants remitted tomale and female members of the family, respectively.The migrant worker survey in the UAE also revealed similar trends. The largest group

receiving remittances was fathers. Although 68 per cent of the female migrants were married,only 28 per cent of the remittance recipients were their husbands. Similarly, 51 per cent ofthe male migrants were married but only 26 per cent of the recipients were their wives. As inthe household survey, the migrant worker survey also revealed that more female migrantsthan male migrants tended to remit to their male family members; 78 per cent and 22 percent of the females remitted to male and female members respectively, while 57 per cent and43 per cent of the males chose to remit to male and female family members respectively.Some trends in remittance receiving are as follows. First, females preferred remitting to

fathers than to mothers, and brothers to sisters (the differences are minimal), while malemigrants preferred fathers to mothers, and brothers to sisters. Second, it was the males,rather than the females, who remitted to female family members. Third, migrants’ fatherswere the largest recipients of remittances. Fourth, a good portion of the married female andmale migrants preferred their parents to spouses. Fifth, more female migrants than malemigrants tended to remit to male family members. Sixth and finally, more males than femaleschose to remit to their mothers. These findings are different from those of other countries, inwhich the status of women is relatively higher. For example, Rahman and Kwen Fee (2009)found different trends in their study in Central Java, Indonesia. They reported more femalerecipients than male recipients in their findings, confirming the general assumption that the

TABLE 3

RECIPIENTS OF REMITTANCES BY GENDER: MIGRANT HOUSEHOLD AND MIGRANT WORKER

SURVEYS, 2009

Identity ofrecipients ofremittances

Migrant household survey inBangladesh, n = 100

Migrant worker survey inUAE, n = 150

Female migranthouseholds,n = 50 (%)

Male migranthouseholds,n = 50 (%)

Femalemigrant,

n = 50 (%)

Malemigrant,

n = 100 (%)

Father 42 46 38 40Spouse 22 24 28 26Mother 14 20 16 12Sister 14 2 6 4Brother 4 6 8 15Others 4 2 4 3

Sex of recipientsMale 78 56 78 57Female 22 44 22 43



mother, or another female relative of a remitting female migrant, usually receives the remit-tances (Momsen, 1999). However, the status of Javanese women needs clarification here. Incomparison with women in other countries in the region, such as Bangladesh, women in Javaare thought to have high status because of their ability to control their own movements, out-side the village and the market-place, to control earned income and to own property (Wolf,1992). Studies on Javanese women often portray them as independent, economicallyautonomous and equal, if not superior, to their husbands (Jay, 1969; cited in Elmhirst, 2002).Remittance receiving is skewed towards males and this should be understood in terms of

the patriarchal family system in Bangladesh. The patriarchal system is a huge topic involvingboth regional variations as well as complex dynamics of change across classes, generations,social upbringing and the rural–urban continuum. This paper thus does not go into detailabout the patriarchal family system and its system of gender relations. However, the statusof Bangladeshi rural women needs clarification here. Women in rural Bangladesh are per-ceived as low in status because of their ability to move freely outside the village and in themarket-place. In terms of the general status of Bangladeshi women, studies have portrayedthem as dependent and economically unequal (Kabeer, 2000; Wood, 1994). On the otherhand, it has been well documented in several studies over the years that senior male familymembers enjoy high status in the rural Bangladeshi household, exercising control over dailyfinances and having a decisive voice in any expenditure or borrowing of capital (Rahman,2009; Rozario, 1992). These familial and cultural patterns, which have ramifications on thereceipt of remittances, are thus crucial to our understanding of the gendered receipt ofremittances.

Remittance control

In the patriarchal family in the developing world, persons who earn may not hold the soleauthority for spending the earnings, as different traditional actors come to intervene in familyresource allocations (King et al., 2006). Therefore, in this study I examined who controlledremittances, whose wishes were prioritized and what role remittances played for the recipientsof remittances in the decision-making process. In response to the question of whethermigrant workers had control over management of remittances, 76 per cent of surveyed femalemigrants in the UAE reported having control over the use of remittances, compared to 56per cent of male migrants. However, this does not mean that all migrants who reported hav-ing control over remittances back home do, in reality, have unlimited control over the use ofremittances.Further investigations into the control of remittances revealed that some recipients turned

down requests about the use of remittances of migrant workers, especially female migrants.In the migrant worker survey, 50 per cent of female migrants, compared to 20 per cent ofmale migrants, reported such experiences. Thus, despite being the income-earners, migrants’priorities or opinions on the use of remittances were often disregarded by their recipients,and this happened to both female and male migrants. Since most recipients of remittanceswere senior male members of the families, migrants could not afford to incur their displea-sure, as this would affect familial relations. Instead, they sometimes showed their discontent-ment by changing the recipients of remittances or remitting to multiple persons to extendtheir control over remittance use within the family.In the female migrant household survey, 52 per cent of the recipients reported adhering to

the wishes of their female members overseas, while 48 per cent did so intermittently and con-ditionally. On the other hand, in the male migrant household survey, 34 per cent of the recip-ients followed all of the wishes of the male migrants, while 62 per cent did so infrequently

12 Rahman


and conditionally. Thus, the female migrants had a higher level of control over remittanceuse than the male migrants did.Although the experiences of migrants with regard to family decision-making are mixed, the

recipients of the remittances tended to have more influence on family decision-making. About24 per cent of recipients from female migrant households and 32 per cent of recipients frommale migrant households, who were mostly females (wives, mothers and sisters), reportedexercising more influence on family decision-making than ever before. They also enjoyed ahigher status through their new role as ‘‘remittance manager’’. However, it was not only hus-bands overseas who had become dependent on wives left behind, but also husbands leftbehind who consulted – if not relied on – wives overseas to make wise decisions about theuse of remittances among competing needs. Management of social relations, deployment ofremittances and negotiations between competing parties dominate a large part of the regulartelecommunications between remitters and recipients.

GENDER DIMENSIONS OF USES AND OUTCOMES

Use of remittances: migrant and household surveys

The identification of areas of priority for remittance use in migrant families is an importantstep towards documenting the remittance–development nexus. To understand the trends inremittance use, in both migrant worker and household surveys, remitters and recipients wereasked to list up to five areas in which they had used remittances so far and up to five areasin which they would plausibly use remittances in the near future in the approximate order ofpriority4 (Table 4).From the male migrant worker’s viewpoint, areas of near-past use of remittances were fam-

ily maintenance, land purchase, education and homebuilding, while from the femalemigrant’s viewpoint, the areas of expenses were family maintenance, land purchase, educationand loan repayment. Two major gendered differences in this area are noteworthy: (i) femalemigrants did not use remittances for homebuilding, while a substantial percentage of malemigrants did so; and (ii) male migrants did not spend remittances on loan repayment, whilealmost half of the female migrants used remittances for this purpose. According to the house-hold survey, savings, education and medical treatment were the major areas of use of remit-tances for female migrants, while business and loan repayment were the major areas of useof remittances for male migrants. Both male and female migrant households were dependenton remittances for family maintenance.With regard to use of remittances in the near future, most migrants intended to shift from

immediate consumption to long-time capital formation (Table 4). For example, mostmigrants showed an interest in business ventures. In the future use of remittances, two gen-der-differentiated patterns of remittances are prominent: (i) female migrants showed moreinterest in saving remittances than male migrants did; and (ii) with regard to the use of remit-tances, land purchase remained mainly a male domain. According to the household survey,an important finding in the household survey is the crucial role that remittances played infamily maintenance of both female and male migrant households, as on average, 90 per centof migrant households were dependent on remittances for family maintenance.The gender-differentiated patterns of savings may be explained from the viewpoint of

household resource allocations and laws of inheritance. Unmarried female members are lar-gely seen as temporary members of the family, who will join their in-laws’ family after mar-riage. The laws of inheritance leave females with little incentive to invest in their families of



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14 Rahman


origin. Gender-differentiated land purchase can be explained along the same lines. Loanrepayments constituted one of the main domains of remittance use for females. This isbecause compared to male migrants (6%), a higher percentage of female migrants (48%) bor-rowed cash from money-lenders to meet their expenses for migration. I have explained else-where that the gendered differential treatment lies in the patriarchal family norms inBangladesh: female members are not seen as a future investment for the family, while malemembers are considered to be permanent members of the family, and so investment in themby, for example, providing migration expenses is justified in terms of the potential futurereturns (Rahman and Belanger, 2012).

Implications of remittances for migrant households

From the findings on the uses of remittances from both the migrant and the household view-point, it is evident that migrants pursued dual motivations – investment in physical as well asin human capital. When remittances were used for homebuilding, land purchase and busi-nesses, families were investing mainly in physical capital, and when used for education, medi-cal treatment and family maintenance, they were being invested mainly in human capital. Inaddition, migrants spent a portion of remittances on uses that were not recognized as‘‘investment’’ in the economic sense, such as housing, education and medical care. However,if the concept of investment is broadened to include expenses that have significant relevanceto human resource development, such as education and health care, the development out-come of remittances becomes tangible. From the ‘‘social development’’ viewpoint (Piper,2009), all these five uses of remittances contribute to improvement of the quality of life ofthe migrant families. However, there is a widely acknowledged need for better managementof the remittance investment process.As shown in the previous section, a good portion of migrant remittances is often used for

recurring family expenses. Migrant remittances were used for family maintenance because,regardless of gender, migrants were the principal economic providers for the families leftbehind. In fact, more female migrants played the role of principal economic providers for thefamily than male migrants. According to the migrant worker surveys, 62 per cent of femalemigrants reported being the principal economic providers for their families, while 43 per centof male migrants did so. On the basis of the household survey, the principal economic pro-vider for 88 per cent of female households was their female family member working abroad,while the principal economic provider for 64 per cent of male households was their male fam-ily member abroad, reflecting the dominant nature of migration as a survival strategy forBangladeshi families.A relevant question to ask is why a large percentage of migrant households depended on

remittances for sustenance. A more detailed investigation revealed that most migrant house-holds lacked the resources to meet their basic necessities (food and clothing). Since mostmigrants hailed from rural areas, where land is considered the main source of family income,enquiries were made into the amount of land they possessed, in order to understand the eco-nomic viability of the family. Approximately 70 per cent of the female migrant householdsand 60 per cent of the male migrant households reported that they did not possess sufficientland for subsistence. Given their economic situation, it is safe to conclude that femalemigrant households had less land for subsistence, so they had a higher number of femalemigrants as economic providers. Succinctly, reported use, management, and investment inphysical and human capital of remittances initiate broader social development implicationsfor migrants and their families.



CONCLUSION

In this paper, I have attempted a gendered analysis of remittances under conditions of tem-porary labour migration. This paper focuses explicitly on gender dimensions of remittancesthat draw on the argument that both men and women shape the process of remittances intoa gendered one. I have argued that remittances should be regarded as a social process thatbegins with the migrant worker remitting the money from the point of destination to therecipient at the point of origin.The Bangladeshi case documents that Bangladeshi males earned and saved more than their

females in the UAE. The saving for women was lower than that for men because womenmigrants’ salary was also low and all migrants needed to spend a minimum amount of cashto sustain their daily lives in the UAE. However, when we consider the proportions of earn-ings for monthly expenses for males and females, the females appeared more frugal than themales. In short, female migrants earned, saved and remitted less than the males. However,the females were more frugal than their male counterparts and when the proportions of earn-ings are taken into consideration, the females actually remitted more than the males.Although females remitted smaller amounts of remittances than their male counterparts

due to their lower earnings and resultant lower savings, females tended to remit more fre-quently than males. Thus, Bangladeshi females were more consistent as remitters; they sentmore, and did so more regularly than Bangladeshi males did. Although women’s nature asnurturer and their stronger sense of obligation and responsibility for family are often deemedto come into play in this phenomenon, I have not found any case in which a male migrantwas selfish or unwilling to fulfil his family obligations. I have attributed this phenomenon tothe single and temporary nature of labour migration in Asia, where everyone migrates forthe short term and desires economic prosperity in his or her community of origin.The remittance channels, both formal and informal (hundi), constitute an important part of

remittances. More females than males tended to use formal channels of remittances (e.g.banks and Western Union). However, this gender-differentiated use of remittance channels isattributed to the cultural context of the informal channel called hundi in the UAE, whichrequires contact with male migration networks and hundi networks. Being aware of the nega-tive social perceptions of their migratory journey at home and abroad, Bangladeshi womenmaintain minimal contact with their male counterparts, which leads them to remit onlythrough formal channels.At the recipient site, both surveys reveal some interesting insights into remittance receiving.

First, migrants’ fathers were the largest recipients of remittances. Second, both marriedwomen and men preferred remitting to other family members rather than to spouses: onlyabout half of the married women and men remitted to their spouses. Third, women preferredsisters to brothers and fathers to mothers, but men preferred brothers to sisters and fathersto mothers. Fourth, it was male, rather than female, migrants who remitted more to females.Fifth and finally, more men than women were the recipients of remittances and, on average,67 per cent of males were recipients of remittances compared to 33 per cent of females. Thisgender-differentiated pattern of remittances, which is skewed towards males, is ascribed tothe patriarchal family system in Bangladesh.With regard to control over remittances, female migrants had more control over remit-

tances than male migrants. However, a good number of migrants had no control over theirearnings once it had been channelled to households. Senior male members enjoyed exclusivecontrol over remittances. When recipients were male family members, there was less controlover remittances; but when they were females, there was more control over remittances. Somenoticeable changes in the status of recipients were seen when recipients who were spouses of

16 Rahman


migrants overseas reported that they exercised more influence on family decision-making thanthey did before becoming recipients, and that their new role as ‘‘remittance manager’’accorded them a relatively higher status in the community. In the migrant–spouse remittanceroute, more regular contact, and consultation and negotiation about management of remit-tances, was also noticed and this has far-flung effects in family relations – what Piper (2005)has called ‘‘democratization of gender relations’’. However, more in-depth research is neededon the power and authority structure in migrant households.To understand the trends in remittance use and development dynamics in households, in

this study I have introduced ‘‘near-past’’ and ‘‘near-future’’ uses of remittances. Remittersand recipients were asked to list, in the approximate order of priority, up to five areas inwhich they used and would use remittances. In the near-past use of remittances, several gen-dered-differentiated uses are noteworthy. First, female migrants did not use remittances forhomebuilding, while a substantial percentage of male migrants did so. Second, male migrantsdid not spend remittances on loan repayment, while almost half of female migrants usedremittances for this purpose. Third, and finally, female households spent more on educationand medical expenses than male migrant households. In the near-future use of remittances,two gender-differentiated patterns are prominent: (i) female migrants showed more interest insaving of remittances than male migrants; and (ii) land purchase remained mainly a maledomain. Interestingly, more females than males were principal economic providers for theirfamilies.Research on the gender dimensions of remittances under conditions of temporary migra-

tion is still in its infancy. Ideally, simultaneous research should be conducted on female andmale migrant workers who share a common geographical and social origin. One of the otherlimitations of this study is that it has not been possible to draw out family and householddynamics to illustrate the full significance of gender in the remittance process. In this attemptto contribute a methodological approach to remittance research, I draw on the argument thatboth men and women shape the gender dimensions of remittances. However, the traditionalauthority structure of patriarchy may provide one lens through which the relationshipbetween men and women in the Bangladeshi context can be understood, and this remains apotential field of further study.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to thank to International Organization for Migration (IOM) Dhaka,Bangladesh, for financing this study in the UAE and Bangladesh. I would like to thank theanonymous reviewers of International Migration for their insightful comments on the draftversion of this paper. A special word of thanks goes to Rabab Fatima, Regional Representa-tive, IOM Dhaka. I have received enormous support from Samiha Huda, Noushin Safinazand Disha Sonata Faruque of IOM Dhaka, and I gratefully acknowledge the pleasure ofworking with them.

NOTES

1. See http: ⁄ ⁄www.bbs.gov.bd ⁄ dataindex ⁄ stat_bangladesh.pdf (accessed 13 May 2010).2. See http://www.bmet.org.bd/BMET/viewStatReport.action?reportnumber=3 (accessed 17 March

2010).3. ‘‘AED’’ is the official designation for the UAE’s dirham currency.



4. Since migrant workers were usually issued work permits for 2–3 years and respondents were work-ing in the UAE for more than 1 year but less than 3 years, I refer to the ‘‘near past’’ as the first 1or 2 years of a contract and the ‘‘near future’’ as the remainder of the contract, which may be 1 or2 years depending on the timing of the interview and the length of the contract.

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Gendering Migrant Remittances: Evidence from Bangladesh and the United Arab Emirates

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