Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-gb8f7 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-25T20:42:34.766Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Asset Accumulation through International Migration: Gender, Remittances, and Decision Making in Ecuador

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 September 2022

Carmen Diana Deere  and
Gina Alvarado
Carmen Diana Deere
Affiliation:
University of Florida
Gina Alvarado
Affiliation:
International Center for Research on Women (ICRW)
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

This study considers whether there are gender differences in the ability of international migrants as well as remittance managers in households of origin to channel remittances to physical and financial asset accumulation. Drawing on a national-level survey of household assets for Ecuador, we show that while only a small share of male or female migrants are able to channel their remittances to asset accumulation, women are as likely to do so as men. Moreover, female migrants tend to exert greater control over their remittances than men, particularly when these are to be used for the acquisition of assets. In addition, women managers in households of origin are a majority of those owning the assets purchased with remittances. These results suggest that processes of international migration may strengthen the economic autonomy of women and facilitate greater gender equality.

Resumen

Resumen

Este artículo analiza si existen diferencias de género en la capacidad de los y las migrantes internacionales, así como de los y las administradoras de remesas en los hogares de origen, para canalizar remesas hacia la acumulación de activos físicos y financieros. Sobre la base de una encuesta a nivel nacional de los activos del hogar para el Ecuador, se muestra que mientras que una pequeña parte de los y las migrantes son capaces de canalizar sus remesas a la acumulación de activos, las mujeres son más propensas a hacerlo que los hombres. Por otra parte, las mujeres migrantes tienden a ejercer un mayor control sobre sus remesas que los hombres, sobre todo cuando éstas se destinan para la adquisición de activos. Además, las mujeres administradoras de remesas en hogares de origen son la mayoría de los que poseen los activos adquiridos con remesas. Estos resultados sugieren que los procesos de la migración internacional pueden fortalecer la posición de negociación de las mujeres y facilitar una mayor igualdad de género.

Type
Research Article
Information
Latin American Research Review , Volume 51 , Issue 4 , 2016 , pp. 249 - 270
Copyright
Copyright © 2016 by the Latin American Studies Association

Footnotes

This work was supported by a grant from the United National Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women). The authors are grateful to Jean D'Acunha, Yassine Fall, Gioconda Herrera, Abena D. Oduro, and three anonymous reviewers whose comments greatly improved the analysis.

References

Arias, Patricia 2013 “International Migration and Familial Change in Communities of Origin: Transformation and Resistance.” Annual Review of Sociology 39:429–450.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bendixen & Associates, Inter-American Development Bank, and Pew Hispanic Center 2003 Remittance Recipients in Ecuador: A Market Research Study. Quito: Inter-American Development Bank.Google Scholar
Calero, Carla, Bedi, Arjun S., and Sparrow, Robert 2009 “Remittances, Liquidity Constraints and Human Capital Investments in Ecuador.” World Development 38 (7): 1143–1154.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Camacho, Gloria, and Hernández, Kattya 2005 Cambió mi vida: Migración femenina, percepciones e impactos. Quito: UNIFEM and CEPLAES.Google Scholar
Campoy-Muñoz, Pilar, Salazar-Ordóñez, Melania, and García-Alonso, Carlos 2013 “Remittances in the Spain-Ecuador Corridor: A Gendered Estimation through Bayesian Networks.” In The International Handbook on Gender, Migration and Transnationalism, edited by Oso, Laura and Ribas-Mateos, Natalia, 376–394. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Colectivo Ioé 2012 “La situación de la inmigración en España.” In Encuesta nacional de inmigrantes 2007, part 1, Documentos del Observatorio Permanente de la Inmigración #24. Madrid: Observatorio Permanente de la Inmigración, Ministerio de Trabajo e Inmigración.Google Scholar
Deere, Carmen Diana, Alvarado, with Gina, Oduro, Abena D., and Boakye-Yiadom, Louis 2015 Gender, Remittances and Asset Accumulation in Ecuador and Ghana. Discussion Paper. New York: UN Women. http://www.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/publications/2015/6/gender-remittances-and-asset-accumulation.Google Scholar
Deere, Carmen Diana, and Díaz, Jackeline Contreras 2011 Acumulación de activos: Una apuesta por la equidad. Quito: FLACSO-Ecuador. http://genderassetgap.org.Google Scholar
Deere, Carmen Diana, and Doss, Cheryl 2006 “The Gender Asset Gap: What Do We Know and Why Does It Matter?” Feminist Economics 12 (1–2): 1–50.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Donato, Katharine M., Alexander, Joseph T., Gabaccia, Donna R., and Leinonen, Johanna 2011 “Variations in the Gender Composition of Immigrant Populations: How They Matter.” International Migration Review 45 (3): 495–526.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Doss, Cheryl 2013 “Intra-household Bargaining and Resource Allocation in Developing Countries.” World Bank Research Observer 28:52–78.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garay Salamanca, Luis Jorge, and Castillo, Adriana Rodríguez 2005 La emigración internacional en el área metropolitana centro occidente, Colombia. Bogotá: Organización International para las Migraciones and Ministry of Foreign Relations.Google Scholar
García, Mar, and Paiewonsky, Denise 2006 Género, remesas y desarrollo. El caso de la migración femenina de Vicente Noble, República Dominicana. Santo Domingo, DR: UN-INSTRAW.Google Scholar
Georges, Eugenia 1990 The Making of a Transnational Community: Migration, Development, and Cultural Change in the Dominican Republic. New York: Columbia University Press.Google Scholar
Grasmuck, Sherri, and Pessar, Patricia 1991 Between Two Islands: Dominican International Migration. Berkeley: University of California Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gratton, Brian 2005 “Ecuador en la historia de la migración internacional: ¿Modelo o aberración?” In La migración ecuatoriana: Transnacionalismo, redes e identidades, edited by Herrera, Gioconda, Carrillo, María Cristina, and Torres, Alicia, 31–56. Quito: FLACSO.Google Scholar
Hall, Anthony 2008 “International Migration and Challenges for Social Policy: The Case of Ecuador.” In Assets, Livelihoods, and Social Policy, edited by Moser, Caroline and Dani, Anis, 85–106. Washington, DC: World Bank.Google Scholar
Hernandez, Kattya, Maldonado, Mónica, and Calderón, Jefferson 2012 Entre crisis y crisis: Experiencias de emigración y retorno; El caso de los barrios populares del noroccidente de Quito. Quito: Abya Yala and CEPLAES.Google Scholar
Herrera, Gioconda 2006 “Precarización del trabajo, crisis de reproducción social y migración femenina: Ecuatorianos en España y Estados Unidos.” In La persistencia de la desigualdad: Género, trabajo y pobreza en América Latina, edited by Herrera, G., 199–223. Quito: CONAMU and FLACSO-Ecuador.Google Scholar
Herrera, Gioconda 2012 “Starting Over Again? Crisis, Gender, and Social Reproduction among Ecuadorian Migrants in Spain.” Feminist Economics 18 (2): 125–148.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Herrera, Gioconda, Moncayo, María Isabel, and Escobar, Alexandra 2012 Perfil migratorio del Ecuador 2011. Quito: Organización International para las Migraciones.Google Scholar
Hirsch, Jennifer 2003 A Courtship after Marriage: Sexuality and Love in Mexican Transnational Families. Berkeley: University of California, Berkeley.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hondagneu-Sotelo, Pierrette 1994 Gendered Transitions: Mexican Experiences of Immigration. Berkeley: University of California Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
INE (Instituto Nacional de Estadística) 2009 Encuesta nacional de inmigrantes 2007: Una monografía. Madrid: INE.Google Scholar
INSTRAW-OIM (UN International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women–International Organization for Migration) 2008 Género y remesas. Migración colombiana del AMCO hacia España. Santo Domingo: INSTRAW.Google Scholar
Jokisch, Brad D. 2002 “Migration and Agricultural Change: The Case of Smallholder Agriculture in Highland Ecuador.” Human Ecology 30 (4): 523–550.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jokisch, Brad, and Pribilsky, Jason 2002 “The Panic to Leave: Economic Crisis and the ‘New Emigration’ from Ecuador.” International Migration 40 (4): 75–101.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kabeer, Naila 1999 “Resources, Agency, Achievements: Reflections on the Measurement of Women's Empowerment.” Development and Change 30:435–464.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mahler, Sarah J. 1999 “Engendering Transnational Migration: A Case Study of Salvadorans.” American Behavioral Scientist 42 (4): 690–719.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mahler, Sarah J., and Pessar, Patricia R. 2006 “Gender Matters: Ethnographers Bring Gender from the Periphery toward the Core of Migration Studies.” International Migration Review 40 (1): 27–63.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mata-Codesal, Diana 2013 “Towards a Gender-Sensitive Approach to Remittances in Ecuador.” In The International Handbook on Gender, Migration and Transnationalism, edited by Oso, Laura and Ribas-Mateos, Natalia, 361–375. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Miles, Ann 2004 From Cuenca to Queens: An Anthropological Story of Transnational Migration. Austin: University of Texas Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Moran-Taylor, Michelle J. 2008 “When Women and Partners Migrate North: Caretakers, Children, and Child Rearing in Guatemala.” Latin American Perspectives 35 (4): 79–95.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Olivić, Iliana, Ponce, Juan, and Onofa, Mercedes 2008 Remesas, pobreza y desigualdad: El caso de Ecuador. Estudio Elcano #1. Madrid: Real Instituto Elcano.Google Scholar
Orozco, Manuel 2013 Migrant Remittances and Development in the Global Economy. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Orozco, Manuel, Lowell, B. Lindsay, Bump, Michael, and Fedewa, Rachael 2005 Transnational Engagement, Remittances and Their Relationship to Development in Latin America and the Caribbean. Washington, DC: Institute for the Study of International Migration, Georgetown University.Google Scholar
Pauli, Julia 2008 “A House of One's Own: Gender, Migration and Resources in Rural Mexico.” American Ethnologist 35 (1): 171–187.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pedone, Claudia 2008 “‘Varones aventureros’ vs. ‘madres que abandonan’: Reconstrucción de las relaciones familiares a partir de la migración ecuatoriana.” REMHU-Revista Interdisciplinar da Mobilidade Humana 30:45–64.Google Scholar
Pérez Orozco, Amaia, Paiewonsky, Denise, and Domínguez, Mar García 2008 Cruzando fronteras II: Migración y desarrollo desde una perspectiva de género. Santo Domingo, DR: UN-INSTRAW.Google Scholar
Pessar, Patricia R. 1986 “The Role of Gender in Dominican Settlement in the United States.” In Women and Change in Latin America, edited by Nash, June and Safa, Helen, 273–294. South Hadley, MA: Bergin and Garvey.Google Scholar
Petrozziello, Allison 2011 “Feminized Financial Flows: How Gender Affects Remittances in Honduras-US Transnational Families.” Gender and Development 19 (1): 53–67.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pfeiffer, Lisa, Richter, Susan, Fletcher, Peri, and Taylor, J. Edward 2008 “Gender in Economic Research on International Migration and Its Impacts: A Critical Review.” In The International Migration of Women, edited by Morrison, Andrew R., Schiff, Maurice, and Sjoblom, Mirja, 11–49. New York: World Bank and Palgrave Macmillan.Google Scholar
Pribilsky, Jason 2007 La chulla vida: Gender, Migration and the Family in Andean Ecuador and New York City. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press.Google Scholar
Ramírez, Carlota, Domínguez, Mar García, and Morais, Julia Míguez 2005 Crossing Borders: Remittances, Gender and Development. Santo Domingo: INSTRAW.Google Scholar
Rodman, Debra 2006 “Gender, Migration, and Transnational Identities: Maya and Ladino Relations in Eastern Guatemala.” PhD diss., University of Florida.Google Scholar
Santillán, Diana, and Ulfe, María Eugenia 2006 Destinatarios y usos de remesas: ¿Una oportunidad para las mujeres salvadoreñas? Working Paper #78, Serie Mujer y Desarrollo. Santiago: ECLAC, Women and Development Unit.Google Scholar
Sen, Amartya K. 1990 “Gender and Cooperative Conflicts.” In Persistent Inequalities: Women and World Development, edited by Tinker, Irene, 123–149. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Stoll, David 2013 El Norte or Bust! How Migration Fever and Microcredit Produced a Financial Crash in a Latin American Town. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield.Google Scholar
Suro, Roberto 2005 “A Survey of Remittance Senders and Receivers.” In Beyond Small Change: Making Migrant Remittances Count, edited by Terry, Donald F. and Wilson, Steven R., 21–40. Washington, DC: Inter-American Development Bank.Google Scholar
Taylor, J. Edward, Arango, Joaquín, Hugo, Graeme, Kouaouci, Ali, Massey, Douglas, and Pellegrino, Adela 1996 “International Migration and Community Development.” Population Index 62 (3): 397–418.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Taylor, Matthew, Moran-Taylor, Michelle, and Ruiz, Debra Rodman 2006 “Land, Ethnic and Gender Change: Transnational Migration and Its Effects on Guatemalan Lives and Landscapes.” Geoforum 37:41–61.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
UNPF (United Nations Population Fund) 2006 State of the World's Population 2006: A Passage to Hope; Women and International Migration. New York: UNPF.Google Scholar
World Bank 2011 Migration and Remittances Factbook 2011. Washington, DC: World Bank.Google Scholar
World Bank 2013 “Bilateral Remittance Matrix 2010.” Updated May 2013. http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/migrationremittancesdiasporaissues/brief/migration-remittances-data (accessed June 10, 2016).Google Scholar
World Bank 2016 “Annual Remittances Data (updated as of April 2016).” http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/migrationremittancesdiasporaissues/brief/migration-remittances-data (accessed June 10, 2016).Google Scholar