Research Articles
Labor migration and impact of remittances on poverty and income inequality: evidence from estate sector of Sri Lanka
Authors:
R. A. P. I. S. Dharmadasa ,
University of Peradeniya, LK
About R. A. P. I. S.
Postgraduate Institute of Agriculture
J. Weerahewa,
University of Peradeniya, LK
About J.
Department of Agricultural Economics and Business Management, Faculty of Agriculture
School of Agriculture and Food, Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, University of Melbourne, Australia
P. A. Samarathunga
University of Peradeniya, LK
About P. A.
Department of Agricultural Economics and Business Management, Faculty of Agriculture
School of Agriculture and Food, Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, University of Melbourne, Australia
Abstract
There is a continuing debate over the impacts of migration on the developing nations despite the ever-increasing size of internal and international remittances. Moreover, a little attention has been paid to analyze the impact of these financial transfers on poverty and inequality of those countries. This study, using a nationally representative sample, assessed the impacts of migration and remittances on poverty and inequality of estate sector households of Sri Lanka. A multinomial logit-ordinary least squares two-stage selection control model and a simulation analysis were used to estimate the impact of migration and remittances on poverty and inequality. Results reveal that internal and international remittances reduce poverty incidence by 2.14% and 2.32%, depth of poverty by 1.33% and 0.98%, and severity of poverty by 0.63% and 0.48%, respectively. Results further suggest that income inequality slightly decreased due to internal and international remittances. Moreover, the findings support a growing view in the literature that migration is a livelihood strategy and it helps in alleviating poverty.
How to Cite:
Dharmadasa, R.A.P.I.S., Weerahewa, J. and Samarathunga, P.A., 2018. Labor migration and impact of remittances on poverty and income inequality: evidence from estate sector of Sri Lanka. Tropical Agricultural Research, 30(1), pp.69–83. DOI: http://doi.org/10.4038/tar.v30i1.8279
Published on
31 Dec 2018.
Peer Reviewed
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