Transcript 259-11-1-intl migr

TODAY
• Día de los muertos
• Migration – the 3rd part of the
population equation
International to/from LA
USA-LA migration
Remittances
© T. M. Whitmore
LAST TIME- Questions?
• Urbanization in LA
Causes & consequences
• The urban dual economy
• Migration – the 3rd part of the
population equation
International within LA
© T. M. Whitmore
Household alter for Día de los muertos
Commercial alter for Día de los muertos
Decorated Graves near Copan, Honduras
Migration-the 3rd part of
demography
• Definitions
•
More-or-less permanent change in the
locus of one’s life
Must cross political boundary
“Circulation” a temporary change in
residence
© T. M. Whitmore
Migration — 4 major types
• 1st type: International within Latin
America
• 2nd type: International to and from Latin
America
• 3rd type rural => rural migration
• 4th type rural => urban migration
© T. M. Whitmore
International to and from
Latin America
• Colonial migrations
•
•
100s of thousands of Iberians
Forced migration of ~10 m Africans
19th century migrations
Europeans to S Brazil, Argentina,
Uruguay, Costa Rica
Asian indentured labor to Caribbean &
Guyana, Surinam, etc.
Contemporary migrations
Caribbean, Ecuador, “el Norte” © T. M. Whitmore
Example of International
migration: Mexicans to US
• N limits of Mexico
Loss of ½ of Mexican territory to
US in war of 1840s
• Post-Mexican war in 1880s
• 1920s revolution and post-revolution
chaos in Mexico plus demand for ag
workers in WWI in US => >500k
But small % of all immigration
© T. M. Whitmore
Example of International
migration: Mexicans to US II
• 1940s -1960s => Bracero program
• 1980s and beyond
•
•
•
Issue of illegal (undocumented)
Mexico — USA labor markets closely
coupled since 1880s
Spatial patterns of migration
Issue of remittances
© T. M. Whitmore
Return migrant (remittance funded) housing in Ecuador
© Brad Jokish
Remittances-a global phenomena
• They are monies sent by workers in the
•
more industrial countries to their homes
in the global “south”
~ 150 million migrants sent
> US$ 300 billion globally in 2006
© T. M. Whitmore
Remittances to LA
• About 30 million Latin American
•
•
migrants living in the United States &
Europe
Send ~ US$68 billion to their families
annually!
Average remittance per migrant ~
US$2,100
Average per capita remittance ~ 20% of
average per capita GDP
15 of 38 in LA countries receive > US$ 1
© T. M. Whitmore
b
Remittance Origins in US
• Top US sending states = CA, NY, FL, IL,
•
•
•
NJ (all over $1 billion annually)
N C over $800 million annually
Immigrants in US have total incomes ~
US$ 500 b
About 10% of that is sent home but
90% is spent in the US locality
~ 60 of remittance senders are “working
poor” or lower middle class (incomes <
$30k) – but most think economic life in
US is good
© T. M. Whitmore
•
•
•
How is money sent?
Most send to their families through
international money transfer companies.
These are costly: fees can run to 6-7% or
more (but these are low by global
standards)
Fewer than 50% of Latin Americans have bank
accounts here or in home countries
Thus some use professional viajeros
(travelers)
Agencies are now competing
IADB working to reduce fees and
bottlenecks
In Durham, NC the Latino Community Credit
Union charges from $6-10
© T. M. Whitmore
Remittance destinations in LA
• Countries where remittances ~ 10% of
total country GDP
Grenada ~31%
Honduras ~25%
El Salvador ~24%
Haiti ~21%
Dominican Republic ~18%
Jamaica ~18%
Nicaragua ~15%
Belize ~11%
Guatemala ~10%
© T. M. Whitmore
Remittances to LA & C
• Exceed the combined flows of all
•
•
•
Foreign Direct Investment and net
Official Development Assistance
Flows substantially exceed tourism
income to each country & almost always
exceed the largest export
Overall remittances ~13% of the value
of all exports
Large percentages (> 15%) of the adult
population in many countries receive
remittances
© T. M. Whitmore
Scale of remittance flows
• Remittances to Mexico ~US$24 billion
Greater than the country's total
tourism income
Greater than 2/3 of the value of
petroleum exports
About equal to 180% of the country's
agricultural exports.
© T. M. Whitmore
Spending Remittances
• Vast majority spent on household
expenses
Rural residents get ~ 1/3 of all
remittances
Investments in real estate (houses)
increasing
Also investments in small business
ventures
© T. M. Whitmore
Consequences & Issues
• Social consequences to the Latin
•
American migrant workers’ families
About 1/3 are undocumented thus
 Visits home are few
 Wages and working conditions may
be poor
Families are divided
Impacts in Latin America
Is this development or dependency?
How many participate, does it
increase or decrease equity?
© T. M. Whitmore
Global Totals:
~$US 301 billion
Remittances: The Human Face of Globalization
Source: © IADB
Quiroga, Mexico
$3.7 b
$1.2 b
$13.2 b
$5.2 b
2006 estimates-note big increases
Source: © IADB
© Thomas Whitmore
Source: © IADB
Source: © IADB
© Thomas Whitmore
Return migrant (remittance funded) housing in Ecuador
© Brad Jokish
© Thomas Whitmore
© Thomas Whitmore
© Thomas Whitmore