Rural-Urban Migration and Remittances in Vietnam: Evidence from Migrant Tracer Data
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Department of Agricultural & Applied Economics, Staff Paper No. 581, 2016
28 Pages Posted: 21 Mar 2016
Date Written: March 10, 2016
Abstract
We examine remittance behavior of rural-urban migrants in Vietnam using a unique data set that links the 2012 round of the Vietnam Household Living Standards Survey (VHLSS) with a 2013 tracer study of migrants from VHLSS households. We estimate factors associated with remittances, taking migrant selection issues into account. We also estimate impacts of net remittances on per capita income in migrant-sending rural households, taking into account the endogeneity of remittances. We find that migration and remittances increase the incomes of rural households. However, the estimated direct income effects are small, and become smaller still as migrants become more established in their new place of residence. Members of ethnic minority groups gain far less than others from migration and remittances. More data and research are needed to broaden these assessments to include non-economic benefits and costs of migration.
Keywords: Migration, remittances, selection, Vietnam
JEL Classification: O15, R23, J61
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation