International Migration, Human Capital, and Entrepreneurship: Evidence from Philippine Migrants' Exchange Rate Shocks

World Bank Policy Research Working Paper Series No. 3578

University of Michigan, Ford School of Public Policy Working Paper No. 02-011

53 Pages Posted: 28 Jul 2005

See all articles by Dean Yang

Dean Yang

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER); University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - Department of Economics

Date Written: February 2005

Abstract

Millions of households in developing countries receive financial support from family members working overseas. How do the economic prospects of overseas migrants affect origin-household investments - in particular, in child human capital and household enterprises? This paper examines Philippine households' responses to overseas members' economic shocks. Overseas Filipinos work in dozens of foreign countries, which experienced sudden (and heterogeneous) changes in exchange rates due to the 1997 Asian financial crisis. Appreciation of a migrant's currency against the Philippine peso leads to increases in household remittances received from overseas. The estimated elasticity of Philippine-peso remittances with respect to the Philippine/foreign exchange rate is 0.60. In addition, these positive income shocks lead to enhanced human capital accumulation and entrepreneurship in origin households. Favorable migrant shocks lead to greater child schooling, reduced child labor, and increased educational expenditure in origin households. More favorable exchange rate shocks also raise hours worked in self-employment, and lead to greater entry into relatively capital-intensive enterprises by migrants' origin households.

Keywords: International migration, remittances, human capital, entrepreneurship, credit constraints, risk

JEL Classification: D13, F22, I2, I3, J22, J23, J24, O12, O15

Suggested Citation

Yang, Dean and Yang, Dean, International Migration, Human Capital, and Entrepreneurship: Evidence from Philippine Migrants' Exchange Rate Shocks (February 2005). World Bank Policy Research Working Paper Series No. 3578, University of Michigan, Ford School of Public Policy Working Paper No. 02-011, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=546483

Dean Yang (Contact Author)

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy ( email )

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HOME PAGE: http://www.umich.edu/~deanyang/

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University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - Department of Economics

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