The Institute for Domestic and International Affairs
Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean Effects of Migration on the Economy
Rutgers Model United Nations 16-19 November 2006
Director: Sheila Ramachandra
Š 2006 Institute for Domestic & International Affairs, Inc. (IDIA) This document is solely for use in preparation for Rutgers Model United Nations 2006. Use for other purposes is not permitted without the express written consent of IDIA. For more information, please write us at idiainfo@idia.net
Introduction _________________________________________________________________ 1 Factors Influencing Migration ______________________________________________________ 3
Background _________________________________________________________________ 4 Recent History ___________________________________________________________________ 5 Brain Drain ______________________________________________________________________ 7 Intra-Latin America Migration ____________________________________________________ 10 Remittances_____________________________________________________________________ 11 Home Town Associations__________________________________________________________ 14
Current Status ______________________________________________________________ 17 The Puebla Process_______________________________________________________________ 20 Development Initiatives and Emigration Cycles _______________________________________ 21
Key Positions _______________________________________________________________ 24 Regional Positions _______________________________________________________________ 24 Central America/Caribbean States __________________________________________________________24 South American States ___________________________________________________________________25 European States ________________________________________________________________________25
Non-Governmental Organizations __________________________________________________ 26 Business Interests ________________________________________________________________ 26 Developed Host States ____________________________________________________________ 27 Developing Origin States __________________________________________________________ 27
Summary___________________________________________________________________ 29 Discussion Questions _________________________________________________________ 30 Works Cited ________________________________________________________________ 31 Works Referenced ___________________________________________________________ 34
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Introduction Human migration has always been a byproduct of differences in economic conditions between states. Migrants seek the opportunity to maximize their income, and quality of life and are generally willing to leave one state in favor of another. Theoretically, assuming the economic factors are brought into line with globalization, income levels and wages in different states will eventually converge, which should stabilize and reduce migrant flows.
The stark reality is that developed states are
experiencing differing levels of economic growth than developing states, leading to significant disparities in wages and job opportunities.
This trend has fueled the
substantial increase in migrant flows from developing states to developed states in recent years, and poses significant economic, social, and political implications for the international community as a whole. In recent centuries, different patterns of migration have characterized the Latin American and Caribbean region.
In the 19th Century, overcrowding and intense
agricultural competition plagued Europe while Latin America and the Caribbean experienced economic growth. Consequently waves of European immigrants came to the region to capitalize on better wages and opportunities for social mobility, often at the behest of what were then colonial superpowers. This trend reversed itself in the latter half of the 20th Century when many Latin American states experienced economic stagnation and political turmoil, while production after World War Two fueled strong economic growth in Europe. In addition, geographical proximity and cultural similarities have established a long-term pattern of frequent population movements across national borders within Latin America and the Caribbean. Migration is a naturally selective process, and there are inherent demographic differences between emigrants and the domestic population of Latin American and Caribbean states. Only people who can afford the costs of relocation and have the resources and skills to find jobs can succeed as migrants. Increasing migrant outflows pose critical challenges for Latin America and the Caribbean, as these migratory flows
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are now tending to focus on skilled laborers, depriving developing states of a very valuable
resource.
This
“brain
drain�
sending significant portions of their earnings to
Brain Drain: A brain drain or human capital flight is an emigration of trained and talented individuals for other nations or jurisdictions, due to conflict or lack of opportunity or health hazards where they are living. It parallels the term "capital flight" which refers to financial capital which is no longer invested in the country where its owner lives and earned it. Investment in higher education is lost when the trained individual leaves, usually not to return.
families back home in the form of remittances.
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_drain
This flow of capital has outpaced foreign direct
Remittance: Money sent from one place or person to another. A remittance economy is one dependent on such money transfers, often from a family member abroad to relatives back home.
phenomenon has become the central migration issue
affecting
most
Latin
American
and
Caribbean states; however emigration can have a beneficial impact on these states as well.
As
migrant communities abroad grow, they are
investment and official development assistance in a number of Latin American and Caribbean states. Also, migrant organizations such as Home Town Associations fund economic development on a community level in many rural Latin American towns.
Source: research.amnh.org/ biodiversity/symposia/archives/seascapes/glo ssary.html
Ultimately, neither of these trends can sufficiently compensate
developing economies in the region for the detrimental effects of the loss of highly skilled workers, and these states must find new ways to cope with the problem. While developing states in Latin America and the Caribbean are concerned with losing highly skilled workers, receiving states for large outflows of emigrants from the region consider maintaining security a priority as this migration does not come without potential danger. The vast majority of skilled and unskilled emigrants from the region settle in the United States because of its significantly higher wages and convenient geographic location; Canada and Western Europe are also common destinations. Increasingly restrictive immigration policies actually trigger greater irregular migration, illustrating the enormous potential migrants stand to gain from working in developed states. In the context of increasing globalization, no state can effectively address these issues on its own. Coping with the challenges posed by increased migration requires
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cooperation and compromise on an international level between Latin American and Caribbean states and developed states in order to maximize benefits for all.
Factors Influencing Migration The vast disparity in wages and per capita income existing between developing and developed states around the world constitutes the fundamental driving factor of international migration. A complex set of factors affect the decisions that migrants must make when they leave their home states, however migrants particularly strive to access better opportunities for jobs and social advancement. Basic demographic characteristics of origin and potential host states significantly influence migration trends, as does the distance between origin and host states. The propensity to migrate decreases as distance increases due to a rise in travel costs and logistical challenges.
The geographical
proximity and economic opportunities offered by North America, especially the United States, make it the primary destination for the vast majority of Latin American and Caribbean emigrants. The populations of both origin and host states also affect migration patterns. Population growth in origin states promotes migrant outflows, while population growth in host states reduces potential job opportunities for migrants, thereby discouraging immigration.1 The most significant demographic factor is the relative level of economic development between states.
While higher wages and economic
opportunities of developed states attract substantial flows of migrants, sustained economic development in origin countries can lead to a reduction in migrant outflows.2 Individuals with greater levels of personal income show a stronger propensity to emigrate than those without similar financial stability. These individuals can more easily cope with travel and resettlement costs in the destination state.3 Emigration also favors highly skilled and educated workers, although ample low-wage opportunities in the United States and other developed states have fueled the emigration of millions of 1
David Karemera et al., “A gravity model analysis of international migration to North America,� Applied Economics, no. 32 (2000): 1750. 2 Ibid, 1751 3 Ibid, 1752
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unskilled workers from Latin America and the Caribbean. Also, proximity to commercial centers increases rates of emigration for rural communities in developing states.4 The development of transnational networks has become an important phenomenon in promoting emigration in recent years, especially in Latin America and the Caribbean. The costs of migration decrease with the number of people that emigrate from a given community. At first only wealthier people can afford to emigrate, however poorer people have the opportunity to migrate once a larger portion of the community has emigrated, since successful travel strategies will assist future travelers, as will an established destination with personal contacts and job prospects.5 These costs diminish as the size of a migrant network increases, and the propensity to migrate increases substantially with the existence of even a single friend or family member living abroad. Also, prevailing political conditions in origin states can trigger migrant outflows.6 The Latin American and Caribbean region has been characterized by a pattern of mass exoduses of displaced people from states experiencing intense political instability and strife in recent years, including Haiti and Columbia.
Background The first major wave of immigrants to Latin America and the Caribbean after the era of Spanish imperialism began in the 19th Century. Due primarily to a decline in the mortality rate the population of Europe more than doubled between 1800 and 1900 as people began to live longer, and suffer from death-causing illness less. This significant increase in populations placed enormous strains on existing food resources and fueled the overseas emigration of some fifty million Europeans from 1830 to 1930.7 Existing lands were not able to provide enough in terms of food, water, or shelter to these suddenly 4
Jorge Mora and J. Edward Taylor, “Determinants of Migration, Destination, and Sector Choice: Disentangling Individual, Household and Community Effects,� in International Migration, Remittances & the Brain Drain, ed. Caglar Ozden and Maurice Schiff, 38 (Washington: The World Bank, 2006). 5 Caglar Ozden and Maurice Shchiff, 5 6 Karemera, 1752 7 Magnus Morner, Adventurers and Proletarians: The Story of Migrants in Latin America (Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1985), 35.
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larger populations. In addition, competition from the United States led to an agricultural crisis throughout much of southern southeastern Europe and the advent of the steamboat reduced the dangers and costs of shipping grain from the Americas to Europe.8 Latin American states including Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil received intense but varied flows of migrants from southern Europe during the 19th Century. Rapid urbanization and abundant land for agricultural production created numerous job opportunities and attracted immigrants in search of better economic conditions, however the comparative economic situation between Latin America and Europe changed drastically after the Second World War.9 Enormous post-war economic growth led to comparatively better wages and socio-economic development in European states than in Latin American economies. This disparity only grew more noticeable in subsequent decades and prompted a significant decline in immigrant flows to Latin America and the Caribbean as well as a return transfer of immigrants back to Europe. The experience of European immigrants in Latin America highlights the sensitivity of migrants to economic conditions in both origin and host states.
Recent History A distinctive feature of Latin America and the Caribbean is the longstanding pattern of frequent population movements between states. The language and cultural similarities between states as well as their geographic proximity to each other facilitate this trend. Differences in wages, economic cycles and the stability of social and political conditions contribute to population movements across national borders. Despite constant fluctuations between numerous Latin American and Caribbean states, migrants have consistently chosen Argentina and Venezuela as destinations.
8
Attracted by job
Ibid, 37 Jorge M. Pizarro, “International Migration in Latin America and the Caribbean: Facts and Findings� in Regional and International Migration in the Caribbean and its Impact on Sustainable Development (Economic Commission on Latin America and the Caribbean, 2005), 21. 9
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opportunities in agricultural and industrial sectors, two-thirds of intraregional migrants lived in these two states as of 2000.10 In recent decades emigration outside of the region has become prominent, because overseas immigration to Latin America and the Caribbean has declined sharply and intraregional migration has relatively stabilized. The enormous disparity in wage levels and socio-economic development between the region and developed countries in the rest of the world plays the most significant role in prompting mass emigration. There are nearly twenty million nationals of Latin American and Caribbean origin living outside of their home states.11 Major host states include Canada, the United Kingdom, Japan and Australia, but the vast majority of Latin American and Caribbean nationals travel to the United States.12 This South-North migratory trend has gained substantial momentum since the mid-20th Century. Immigrants from Latin America and the Caribbean made up 54 per cent of the American foreign-born population in 2000, totaling some 14.5 million.13 Within overall emigration levels, a critical development in recent years is the increase in the emigration of highly skilled workers. This trend has had a particularly acute effect on the development of Latin American and Caribbean economies; however the region is experiencing increasing rates of return migration. Migrants are also exerting a continued influence on the economies of their origin states through the contribution of remittances and the development of transnational networks.
Overall, globalization in
recent decades has brought increasing complexity to the trends of migrants and their contributions to the development of both their origin and host states.
10
Ibid, 24 Hamilton, 83 12 Ibid, 27 13 Kimberly Hamilton, “Migration Trends and Patterns in the Americas� in World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, ed. Irena Omelaniuk et al., (Geneva: International Organization of Migration, 2005), 84. 11
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Brain Drain Since the middle of the 20th Century, the loss of highly skilled workers has become a significant obstacle in the development and growth of the economies of Latin America and the Caribbean. The term ‘brain drain’ phenomenon was first used in relation to British scientists moving to the United States for what they felt were better opportunities. More recently, however, this term has been used much more broadly to relate to the transfer of valuable human capital from throughout the developing world. Human capital includes “people with special talents, high skills, and specialized knowledge in scientific, technological and cultural areas.”14 It encompasses a wide variety of professionals from scientists and engineers to workers with entrepreneurial talent, all of whom are integral in promoting the scientific and technological innovation that fuel economic growth in all states. The Latin American and Caribbean region has faced considerable losses of human capital for several decades, and outflows of skilled workers have increased significantly in recent years. During the period of decolonization that followed the Second World War, skilled personnel emigrated from the Caribbean as well as regions of Africa and Asia in large flows headed for developed states.15 In the 1960s and 1970s, military regimes in Latin American states including Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Chile triggered mass exoduses of academics, scientists, and professionals by targeting academic centers and institutions of higher learning to repress criticism and opposition. These migrations typically resulted in economic and political refugees crossing borders within South America, as opposed to long distance relocation. The restoration of democratic governments in subsequent decades promoted the return of some intellectuals, although this number constituted only a fraction of the original outflows of highly skilled
14
Andres Solimano, Globalizing talent and human capital: implications for developing countries (Santiago: United Nations, 2002), 7. 15 Adela Pellegrino, “Brain drain, mobility and circulation: new forms of skilled migration” in International migration and development in the Americas (Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, 2001), 225.
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persons.16 The brain drain has become a major concern of Latin American and Caribbean governments recently, because the region has experienced one of the highest emigration rates of skilled workers in the world. The majority of college-educated citizens from several small Caribbean and Central American states lived outside of their home states in 2000.17 There are specific factors that affect the movement of human capital around the world. Just as economic disparities primarily fuel general migration, corresponding inequalities in the distribution of scientific and technological resources stimulate the flow of skilled workers to developed nations.18
Due largely to geographical proximity,
significantly better wages, and the wealth of scientific resources and opportunities, the United States has been a magnet for the flow of human capital from Latin America and the Caribbean. Not only can skilled migrants obtain better wages that match their skill set in developed states such as the U.S., but human capital also faces “increasing returns in knowledge creation.”
Scientists and researchers seek to tap into networks of
professionals in their respective fields to facilitate productivity, which are firmly entrenched in developed states. Once established, these networks are self-sustaining in fueling continued research and innovation.19 Ultimately, the ‘brain drain’ exacerbates already severe economic disparities between developed and developing states by depriving poor states of valuable resources necessary for promoting economic growth. 20 Highly skilled workers play an important role in domestic economies as they generate positive developments to society that are lost if they emigrate. For example, the monetary value in taxes skilled workers pay is larger than the equivalent value of public services they consume.21 In addition to enhancing
16
Solimano, Globalizing talent and human capital: implications for developing countries, 10 Caglar Ozden and Maurice Schiff, “Overview” in International Migration, Remittances & the Brain Drain (Washington: The World Bank, 2006), 11. 18 Solimano, Globalizing talent and human capital: implications for developing countries, 5 19 Ibid, 15 20 Pellegrino, “Brain drain, mobility and circulation: new forms of skilled migration,” 225 21 Caglar Ozden and Maurice Schiff, 10 17
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technological development and innovation, skilled workers such as doctors and highlevel educators are important contributors to the health and educational sectors. Strong health and education sectors are important prerequisites for broad economic growth. In the overall production process, highly skilled and low-skilled workers complement each other and a loss of human capital due to emigration can detrimentally affect the wages and productivity of low skilled workers.22 In fact, a thriving economy relies upon the supply of workers who represent the entire spectrum of labor skills. Without highly skilled employees, important economic activities, such as engineering cannot take place, having a noticeable affect on the whole of society. Similarly, if the same economy were to lose the product of low-wage workers, then it is likely that menial tasks such as agriculture and basic services would suffer. The loss of highly skilled workers due to emigration has farther-reaching detrimental consequences than that of the loss of low skilled workers. Latin American and Caribbean states must devise policies to cope with these consequences, especially since the annual outflow of human capital from Latin American and Caribbean states is on the rise. Trends in recent decades indicate that the flow of human capital no longer follows a predominantly unidirectional path from developing to developed states. Consequently, the effects of the ‘brain drain’ are potentially less negative in the long-run. In the latter half of the 20th Century, technological innovation and globalization fundamentally transformed transportation and communication networks, which have a strong influence on migration. Migratory patterns of the highly skilled are increasingly characterized by a cyclical nature of emigration and a rise in return migration, which indicates that the ‘brain drain’ is not necessarily permanent.23 Other beneficial effects for developing states include the contribution of remittances and the development of transnational networks that foster social and economic links between origin and host states; however
22
Frederic Docquier and Hillel Rapoport, “Skilled migration: the perspective of developing countries,” Policy, research working paper series, no. WPS3382 (2004). The World Bank, http://econ.worldbank.org, 2 23 Solimano, Globalizing talent and human capital: implications for developing countries,5
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the overall economic ramifications of the brain drain still significantly outweigh potential benefits to these states.24
Intra-Latin America Migration Not all migration in Latin America is directed at North America or Europe; indeed, there is significant relocation within the continent, itself, representing the ability of an economy to be integrated across traditional political borders. Instead of operating as fully functional economies in individual states, evidence in the region suggests that efforts at free trade and cooperative trade have afforded the region with a fairly unified regional economy, able to take advantage of a broader supply of labor, found throughout the continent.
While traditional migratory flows have people leaving a struggling
economy to relocate where there is economic growth, empirical data in Latin America suggests that there may be a new paradigm in which labor travels to where work is available, yet still maintain their connection with their homes. In the 1980s, especially in the Southern Cone region, there was a significant migratory flow of Brazilians, Paraguayans, and Uruguayans who sought to relocate from an area of recession by immigrating to Argentina after the end of the dictatorship. As Argentina’s economy flourished during this period, their homeland seeking economic opportunity, only
Free Trade: Trade arrangements where tariffs or other barriers to the free flow of goods and services are eliminated.
to find that jobs that would typically have been
Source: www.web.net/rain/glossary.htm
Argentineans who had previously left returned to
available, had in fact been taken up by migratory groups from the aforementioned states. Since the mid-1990s when Argentina’s economy began to stagnate and enter a recession
24
Frederic Docquier and Hillel Rapoport, 2
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of its own, Argentina has again become a net exporter of labor, this time primarily to the United States and Europe.25 These migrations have largely been credited to the development of a free trade region in South America, known as the Southern Common Market, or MERCOSUR.26 Free trade agreements promote the free flow of goods and services, thereby promoting economic growth by all those involved.
MERCOSUR also promotes relatively
unobstructed transfer of labor resources, further enhancing free trade to allow for specialization.
Remittances Remittances have emerged as a dominant source of capital flows in developing states around the world, with a particularly significant impact in Latin America and the Caribbean. A remittance is the transfer of varying amounts of money earned by a migrant living abroad to his or her family back home.
Remittance flows to the
developing world have been increasing steadily in recent decades. The Latin American and Caribbean region has the highest growth rate with an average increase in total remittance flows of 12.4 per cent annually.27 In 2003, the amount of remittances to the region, totaling USD $38 billion, surpassed the total amount of official development aid and foreign direct investment.28 As the flow of remittances constitutes an increasingly substantial share of the Gross Domestic Product of many developing states
Gross Domestic Product: A measure of the economy which includes the value of all products and services produced by a nation in a given year. The growth rate of GDP is used to compare the economic progress of various nations.
Source: www.zacks.com/help/glossary/index.php Alvarado, Ivan Gonzalez. “Migration in Latin America and the Caribbean: A view from the ICFTU/ORIT,” International Labour Organization. http://www.ilo.org/public/english/dialogue/actrav/publ/129/19.pdf. Accessed 21 July 2006. 26 MERCOSUR was founded in 1991 with the Treaty of Asuncion, and is a customs union between Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Venezuela. Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru are associate members of the treaty organization. 27 Andres Solimano, “Remittances by emigrants: issues and evidence,” Macroeconomia del desarrollo, no. 26 (2003). The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, via ECLAC Library, http://www.eclac.cl/biblioteca/default.asp?lang=english&page=information, 9. 28 Hamilton, 99 25
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in Latin America and the Caribbean, it has been playing a greater role in developing economies of the region. Unlike other volatile capital flows, remittances have been a stable source of financial capital for developing states, and tend not to fluctuate greatly with cycles of economic growth and contraction.
Studies attribute this feature of
remittances to the fact that migrants often sustain or increase the flow of money to help families in need at home.29 Since remittances are a direct monetary transfer from person to person, they are generally well-targeted to the needs of the receiving person or family.30 In addition to altruistic motivations, migrants also remit to invest in assets back home and to repay families for financing their emigration or education abroad.31 Remittances have a net positive impact on alleviating poverty and triggering economic growth in developing states in the short term. This financial flow brings hard currency
into
economies
that
substantial
developing often
foreign
lack
investment,
which increases overall national savings.
Families
receiving
Hard Currency: The term "hard currency" is a carry-over from the days when sound currency was freely convertible into "hard" metal, ie gold. It is used today to describe a currency which is sufficiently sound so that it is generally accepted internationally at face value. Source: www.eagletraders.com/other/glossary_fin_terms.htm
remittances increase their overall consumption of goods and services, especially on basic necessities such as food, clothing and medicine. Also, remittances through migrant associations, known as home town associations facilitate investment by financing small community projects. A rise in both consumption and investment are necessary precursors for the overall growth of a national economy. The high costs of money transfers reduce the potential beneficial impacts of remittances and lead migrants to use informal rather than formal channels to send money back home. In the United States, numerous regulations and the high costs associated with
29
Solimano, “Remittances by emigrants: issues and evidence,” 7 Dilip Ratha, “Migrant Remittances as a Source of Development Finance” in World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, ed. Irena Omelaniuk et al., (Geneva: International Organization of Migration, 2005), 270. 31 Solimano, “Remittances by emigrants: issues and evidence,” 12 30
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entering the market have reduced competitiveness in the money transmission sector. Major money transfer operators (MTOs) like Western Union and Money Gram dominate the market, leading to market inefficiency.32 These financial entities profit by charging currency conversion fees that are less favorable than the market foreign currency exchange rate, which is an especially acute problem in Latin America and the Caribbean. This exchange rate spread is twenty eight per cent of total costs associated with money transfer in Latin America and the Caribbean, versus only fourteen per cent of total costs outside of the region.33 This means that more than one fourth of the money remitted by workers in the United States is lost to transaction costs, and is not received by families back home. The very poor are most detrimentally affected by these conditions in the money transmission market. Financial constraints prevent the very poor from remitting large sums of money on one or two occasions annually, instead they send several small remittances per year.34
Migrants therefore tend to use informal means of sending
remittances, such as transporting cash through friends or family. Informal channels of money transfer have lower overall costs and are more easily accessible especially for receiving families in rural areas, however as these entities are not subject to regulation they are more prone to abuse and exploitation.
Reducing remittance fees would
encourage migrants to use formal rather than informal means of money transfer and also significantly increase remittance flows, with the largest impact on poor recipients in developing states.35 This could have a potentially dangerous affect on the economy from which the money is being sent, however. Every dollar sent out of the United States reduces the money supply, and if taken on a macro scale, could cause disinflation or even deflation as a result in a decline in economic activity.
32
Ibid, 19 Solimano, 20 34 Ratha, 269 35 Ratha, 270 33
Rutgers Model United Nations 2006 Although remittance flows inject large amounts of money into many developing economies, they do
Deflation: A decline in the general price level, resulting in an increase in the purchasing power of the monetary unit.
14
Source:highered.mcgrawhill.com/sites/0072516682/student_vie w0/chapter2/key_terms.html
not effectively promote sustainable economic growth. In Latin America and the Caribbean, families that receive remittances tend to spend them largely on immediate consumption rather than investing in land, education, or a new business that generate long-term benefits. General spending on consumption rather than investment can trigger short-term growth, but hinders the future economic growth of any state. Developing states often lack stable sources of investment to sustain long-term economic growth. A significant potential negative impact of large remittance flows is that they can lead to a “culture of dependence.�36 Instead of attempting to escape poverty by working or obtaining an education, families can become dependent on the financial aid from migrants abroad. This process is becoming a growing concern as remittance flows have increased substantially in recent years. Since a remittance is the private transfer of money between two individuals, governments cannot directly control how individuals spend remittances, or how these transfers affect the broader money supply. Enacting restrictive legislation to control remittances has the potential to reduce overall remittance flows rather than directing spending towards investment projects. Ultimately, although remittances can dramatically improve living conditions for the poor in the shortrun, these flows do not ameliorate underlying structural economic problems that perpetuate poverty in developing states.
Home Town Associations Home town associations (HTAs) are a subset of migrant non-governmental organizations unique to Latin America and the Caribbean. These groups are playing an increasingly significant role in the contributions of Hispanic migrants in the U.S. to the economic and social development of their origin states. Transnational networks often lead to the development of communities of Latino immigrants in the U.S. who emigrated
36
Ibid, 16
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from the same town or area. First-generation immigrants that want to maintain strong ties to their respective countries of origin constitute the vast majority of the membership base for home town associations, or clubs.37
Fundraising activities simultaneously
provide a source of social interaction and community development for immigrants in the United States and also raise funds to invest in developmental projects back home. In the broad macroeconomic context, the sheer amount of individual remittances far outweigh contributions by home town associations to developing Latin American and Caribbean states, but these organizations seek to address the needs of entire communities rather than just individual families. While some Mexican groups have a fundraising base of more than USD $100,000 annually, the average HTA generates an average of USD $10,000 per year. HTAs invest in projects corresponding to their individual financial capabilities, which are generally small infrastructure or beautification projects.38 Home town associations in the U.S. number in the thousands, where Mexican clubs are the most common, but there is a growing number of clubs for communities in El Salvador, the Dominican Republic and Guatemala.39 Most HTAs work in very poor rural communities with populations of less than one thousand and an annual per capita GDP of less than USD $400. As these towns generally have severely underdeveloped infrastructures, even small investments of a few thousand dollars a year can make a substantial impact on the prevailing overall quality of life.40 Philanthropic efforts entail a variety of projects from supporting church activities to paving roads, but HTAs are increasingly placing a priority on developing and improving health and educational facilities. Their donations can greatly exceed the municipal budget, especially in small towns.41 Since the members of a
37
Manuel Orozco, “Latino Hometown Associations as Agents of Development in Latin America” in Sending Money Home: Hispanic Remittances and Community Development, ed. Rodolfo O. de la Garza and B. Lowell (Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2002), 85. 38 Manuel Orozco, “Migrant Hometown Associations (HTAs) – The Human Face of Globalization” in World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, ed. Irena Omelaniuk et al., (Geneva: International Organization of Migration, 2005), 281. 39 Orozco, “Latino Hometown Associations as Agents of Development in Latin America,” 90. 40 Orozco, “Migrant Hometown Associations (HTAs) – The Human Face of Globalization,” 281. 41 Ibid, 279.
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home town association investing in development projects in a rural Latin American town originate from the community their HTA is serving themselves, these immigrants can easily assess the socio-economic needs of their home community and choose to invest in projects that best reflect those needs. An important contribution of these clubs that differs from the impact of remittances is that the projects they invest in tend to be sustainable. Communities can benefit from a new school building or paved road long after project completion.42
Ultimately, although remittances make a substantial
difference on the incomes of immigrants’ families in Latin America and the Caribbean, the work of home town associations is more beneficial for long-term development. Although HTAs are concerned with pursuing small-scale development projects in home communities, their primary purpose is to serve the social needs of their immigrant members in adjusting to life in the United States. The first priority of immigrants in these clubs is to improve their domestic situation before addressing the needs of their original hometown.43 Most Hispanic organizations in the U.S. are domestically oriented, and these associations are no exception. Some HTAs donate to projects that only marginally promote community development, such as religious activities. Since these clubs are a recent development of the past decade, the long-term viability of the development efforts of Home Town Associations is unclear.44 HTAs still have potential to foster considerable development in Latin American and Caribbean states, especially in rural areas. Recent trends indicate that overall, HTAs are increasingly looking to focus on sustainable development projects. As the amount of remittances to developing Latin American and Caribbean states continues to rise, immigrants are becoming more attentive to the conditions of their hometowns and these associations are playing a central role in assisting immigrants to establish and maintain transnational networks with economic and social links with their original communities.
42
Ibid, 282. Orozco, “Latino Hometown Associations as Agents of Development in Latin America,” 97. 44 Orozco, “Migrant Hometown Associations (HTAs) – The Human Face of Globalization,” 283. 43
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Regions around the world with high net emigration are closely watching the development and of Home Town Associations in Latin America and the Caribbean for widespread applicability in the future.45 With this opportunity for local growth comes potential for economic danger, however.
Development funded entirely through remittances, especially when they
represent more money than local municipal budgets has the potential to be misguided when the ultimate needs of a community are taken into account. While these funds may be directed towards areas that suggest long-term growth, they can be misdirected to areas that are not priorities when the needs of a given town or region are considered. There is a propensity to fund so-called “pet projects,” instead of areas that need specific attention.
Current Status The nature of immigration policies of potential destination states has a significant impact on migratory patterns of laborers depending upon the restrictive nature of the laws in the host country.
In recent years, major host states have changed their policy
approach. The percentage of developed states that wanted to curb overall immigration decreased substantially from sixty per cent in 1996 to only twelve per cent in 2005, as states have become more attuned to the overall effects of international migration and are moving away from broadly curbing immigrant flows to promoting the selective immigration of highly skilled migrants.46 In addition, nations such as the United States, which has traditionally hosted primarily permanent migration, generally grant only temporary status to migrants. Since immigrant policies have become highly selective, immigrants have legally gained admittance to developed states primarily only through
45
Ibid, 283 Barry Mirkin, “International Migration Policies: An Overview,” in Regional and International Migration in the Caribbean and its Impact on Sustainable Development (Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, 2005), 39.
46
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family reunification programs.47 Consequently, restrictive policies have also triggered greater flows of undocumented migrants. Heightened security concerns and U.S. President George W. Bush’s introduction of a temporary worker program in 2004 are significant recent developments affecting American immigration policy. Since the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, the United States’ primary immigration concern has been enhancing security through a variety of measures including heightened border control and restrictive visa policies.48 In 2004, Bush introduced a plan for a temporary worker program designed to match willing employers with available foreign workers to fill job vacancies. This plan proposes granting temporary legal status to all undocumented migrants in the country for three years. After this period, undocumented migrants must return to their home country if they do not obtain legal residence in the U.S. The plan also entails a “reasonable” increase in the annual issuance of visa permits.49 It reached Congress for debate in February 2006, but has garnered much criticism and is unlikely to pass in its current form. Immigration policy reform seeks to address issues associated with illegal migration including exploitation by employers and human trafficking. Canada, another major destination state for migrants from Latin America and the Caribbean, has recently undergone significant changes in immigration policy.
The
population of Latin American and the Caribbean nationals living in Canada has increased by a factor of forty-five since 1960, however the migrant population is polarized and migrants tend to either be very highly skilled or low skilled. The Immigration and Refuge Protection Act of 2002 sought to move away from an immigration policy of selecting migrants based on the occupational needs of the economy towards a point system that favors the long-term earnings potential of migrants.50
47
Ibid, 40 Hamilton, 85 49 Office of the Press Secretary, “Fact Sheet: Fair and Secure Immigration Reform,” The White House, http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/01/20040107-1.html (accessed February 6, 2006). 50 Ibid, 89 48
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A central challenge facing policymakers in states such as the U.S. and Canada with high immigration levels is finding the delicate balance between incorporating protectionist security concerns and harnessing the beneficial economic potential of Irregular Migration: As a conceptual or legal category, irregular migration includes a variety of kinds of movement and status in conflict with migration laws in migrant-transit and migrant-receiving countries. Irregularity is said to refer to, among other things, illegal entry, overstaying visas, remaining as a rejected asylumseeker, engaging in prohibited work, and being sans papiers or undocumented. Source: http://www.compas.ox.ac.uk/events/AC%20Intro%2005.shtml
migration.
As long as severe
economic disparities exist between states, the supply will always far exceed the demand for migrant workers
in
labor
markets
of
developed states. Migrant flows are very sensitive to the nature of
immigration policies of potential host states, however restrictive immigration policies cannot counter the natural forces of supply and demand that fuel migration. Consequently, increasingly selective immigration policies of host states have triggered a significant rise in irregular migration.51 The U.S. houses a substantial population of nine million undocumented migrants, of which fifty-seven per cent originate from Mexico and twenty-three per cent originate from the rest of Latin America and the Caribbean.52 Many Central American states, especially Mexico, have become key origin and transit points of undocumented migrants from the entire region. The prevalence of illegal migration raises concerns over the security and welfare of undocumented laborers. Migrants that resort to illegal means to enter another state are vulnerable to exploitation by employers, as well as human smuggling and trafficking. Human trafficking involves deceiving or coercing migrants for the purposes of labor exploitation.
“Trafficking in human beings is a global phenomenon which many
commentators have likened to a modern form of slavery.”53 The American Central Human Trafficking: is a term define the and recruiting, Frank C. Eelens, “The to Land of Milk Honey? Recent Migration to Aruba,” in International migration and harboring, obtaining, transportation of a person development in the Americas, in Regional and International Migration in the Caribbean and its Impact on by use of force, fraud, or(Economic coercion for the purposefor Latin America and the Caribbean, 2005), 1. Sustainable Development Commission 52 of subjecting them to involuntary acts, such as Hamilton, 87 53 commercial sexualMigration exploitation (including Adela Pellegrino, from Latin America: Trends and Policy Challenges (Geneva: International prostitution) or involuntary labor. Organization for Migration, 2004), 57. 51 Trafficking
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_trafficking
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Intelligence Agency estimates that more than fifty-thousand women and children are trafficked to the U.S. each year.54 The practice has deep historical roots in Latin America and the Caribbean. Generations of women and children in the region have suffered from trafficking in prostitution and gold mining in the Amazon region of South America, and increasingly in sex tourism. Latin America and the Caribbean are also the primary suppliers of sex workers to several European countries.55 The international nature of human trafficking and illegal migration necessitates multi-lateral cooperation between states to effectively address this growing problem.
The Puebla Process In response to the growing complexity of international migration and the need for interstate cooperation, states are increasingly adopting a regional approach to manage migration-related issues. This trend has given rise to regional consultative processes focused on migration. “These non-binding consultative fora bring representatives of states, civil society (NGOs) and international organizations together at the regional level to discuss migration issues in a cooperative manner.�56
Openness and efficiency
characterize these processes, and they promote exploring a variety of means to reach feasible solutions to migration-related problems in an informal setting.57 Discussions in regional consultative processes provide the foundation for bilateral and multilateral discussions among states.58 The Regional Conference on Migration (RCM), also known as the Puebla Process59, was the first major regional consultative process created in the Latin American and Caribbean region. Central American states as well as the U.S. and Canada first met at Puebla, Mexico in 1996 with the primary goal of reducing irregular migration in North 54
Hamilton, 97 Ibid, 58 56 Amanda Klekowski von Koppenfels, The Role of Regional Consultative Processes in Managing International Migration (Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2001), 7. 57 Ibid, 9 58 Ibid, 7 59 Current membership of the Regional Conference on Migration include Belize, Canada, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, and the United States. 55
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and Central America.60 The RCM’s core principles include protecting migrants’ rights and freedoms, promoting “orderly and secure migration,” as well as facilitating “dialogue and cooperation” among member states, non-governmental organizations and international organizations on issues relating to international migration.61 Members have developed a Plan of Action that addresses their primary concerns: migration policies and management, human rights, and the link between migration and development.
The
Puebla Process, which meets regularly on a rotating basis in each member state, pursues these concerns through a variety of activities including consultations, seminars and research.62
The RCM has created a Virtual Secretariat, “a web-based information
exchange mechanism,” to facilitate communication and the flow of research and information between states regarding migration issues.63 Since its inception in 1996, the Puebla Process has made significant advances in modernizing border control systems, establishing safe repatriation programs for illegal migrants, combating human trafficking and protecting human rights.64 Most importantly, participants maintain a continuing commitment to the process. Its success as a forum that houses differing views and multilateral dialogue has led to the establishment of additional regional consultative processes.
Development Initiatives and Emigration Cycles Globalization has become the driving force in creating new complex patterns of migration. These recent trends indicate that migrant outflows are no longer solely unidirectional from sending to receiving states, but increasingly cyclical involving temporary and return migration.
Return migration, the permanent resettlement of
expatriates in their home states, as well as the temporary movement of migrants abroad, are both on the rise in Latin America and the Caribbean. Transnational networks have
60
Ibid, 34 “Regional Conference on Migration (RCM),” Regional Conference on Migration, http://www.rcmvs.org/pagina_n.htm (accessed February 6, 2006). 62 “Plan of Action,” Regional Conference on Migration, http://www.rcmvs.org/plande.htm (accessed February 6, 2006) 63 von Koppenfels, 34 64 Ibid, 36 61
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fueled this trend by encouraging and maintaining economic and social links between emigrant communities and their origin states. As immigration policies of receiving states grant fewer permanent visas and transnational networks maintain links with sending states, temporary migration has emerged as the dominant trend in new emigration patterns. This form of relocation of highly skilled workers has high potential benefit for source states as these migrants return to their home states with enhanced knowledge and skills; however the increasing rate of return migration is not a simple solution to the brain drain problem. The return of skilled workers has the potential to positively impact states’ economies only under specific conditions. Returning workers must have better skills and enhanced knowledge that they could not gain in their home state and these skills must be relevant in their home economy. These workers must also possess the initiative and ability to use these skills upon return. Rarely do returning workers satisfy all three of these conditions. These workers must also cope with the challenges of re-integrating into their home societies, which include social rejection, lower wages, and difficulty in finding work.65
The
potential loss of remittances is a possible detrimental effect on sending states’ economies caused by the return of highly skilled migrants, because remittance flows have become an increasingly important source of development finance for several states in the Latin American and Caribbean region. States with large remittance flows do not benefit from significant return migration.
Returning migrants can also include refugees and
repatriated irregular migrants. Large flows of returnees can raise the potential for “instability, conflict and renewed out migration” by straining already insufficient resources in developing states.66 The temporary migration of workers and the permanent return of migrants have the potential to ameliorate the brain drain problem, but these
65
Frank Laczko, “Enhancing the Benefits of Return Migration for Development,” in World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, ed. Irena Omelaniuk et al., (Geneva: International Organization of Migration, 2005), 289. 66 Ibid, 287
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trends bring additional concerns and challenges to policymakers of high emigration states. To enhance the positive economic impact of temporary and return migration, international organizations and governments have undertaken initiatives to encourage highly skilled migrants to return to their origin states. Many of these programs have met with definitive positive results; however initiatives geared towards encouraging permanent return migration have not been particularly effective.
Consequently,
governments are “encouraging temporary return migration, where the emphasis is on sharing and transfer of knowledge, skills, ideas and technologies.”67 Overall return rates are still only a small fraction of emigration rates throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, and governments of developing states are looking towards augmenting the impact of transnational networks through efforts that encourage development. Government initiatives in Mexico and El Salvador support the work of home town associations, as these organizations have emerged as avenues for migrant groups abroad to foster economic development in their origin communities.
Mexico’s Iniciativa
Ciudadana 3 x 1 program matches contributions by HTAs with equivalent funds from municipal, state and federal governments. This program’s overall funds totaled USD $43 million, benefiting Mexican states with the highest emigration rates in 2002 alone.68 In El Salvador, the Social Investment and Local Development Fund’s initiative has supported more than forty-five developmental projects with Salvadoran HTAs contributing about sixteen per cent of the total funds.69 These programs highlight the value of transnational networks and demonstrate that “building transnational links is a two-way process.”70 These migrant networks are generally self-sustaining in easing and
67
Ibid, 292 Orozco, “Migrant Hometown Associations (HTAs) – The Human Face of Globalization,” 281 69 Ibid, 282 70 Bimal Ghosh, “Economic Effects of International Migration: A Synoptic Overview,” in World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, ed. Irena Omelaniuk et al., (Geneva: International Organization of Migration, 2005), 177. 68
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encouraging emigration, but governmental cooperation and initiative is necessary to harness the power of these social and economic ties to facilitate economic development in sending states.
Key Positions Regional Positions As much of Latin America and the Caribbean can be considered as coming from the same economic circumstances, these states can largely be amalgamated when discussing the needs and expectations of these groups. True comparison can be made when considering how potential host states react to migratory flows, and what efforts they have implemented to either limit or otherwise control population inflows. Similarly, the impact of regional trade agreements cannot be overlooked. Central America/Caribbean States Recent migration trends in Latin American, including the rise of irregular migration and the loss of highly skilled workers, have acutely affected states in Central America and the Caribbean.
Ecuador and the Dominican Republic face increasing
inflows of refugees from Colombia and Haiti respectively due to persistent political instability. These states favor increasingly protectionist and restrictive migration policies in efforts to cope with the strains refugees place on already scarce resources. Enhanced security and effective management of borders are primary concerns for Central American states, because they are strategic points of transit for human smuggling and trafficking to North America. These states must balance the need to protect the rights and ensure the safety of all migrants with effective security measures.
Also, remittances are an
important factor in developing the economies of the region. Mexico alone receives the highest absolute amount of remittances in the world.71 States in Central America and the Caribbean favor policies that promote the free flow of remittances and they only support regulation that lowers the overall cost of remittance transfers. Consequently these states 71
Hamilton, 99
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do not want to encourage significant return migration as it can reduce remittance contributions from migrants abroad. Governments are recognizing the need to work together to address these issues, and forums such as the Regional Conference on Migration are facilitating inter-governmental cooperation in the region to reach common goals. South American States Mercosur, the Southern Common Market, plays an integral role in shaping the migration policy objectives of South American States. All South American states are experiencing growing trends of emigration, especially towards the U.S., as well as irregular migration within and out of the region.
Argentina and Venezuela remain
traditional centers of immigration from other states in the region. Governments favor enhancing economic and social ties between members to promote economic integration and growth, but also taking a balanced approach to regularizing transit at borders to deter irregular migration. The brain drain is a concern for states such as Argentina, but remains a less acute problem than for other regions of Latin America. European States European states have faced increasing flows of migrants from Latin America and the Caribbean, especially since the U.S. tightened immigration policies after the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks.
European states also prioritize security and have
promoted very selective immigration policies in the recent past that focused on recruiting highly skilled foreign nationals in specific sectors with labor shortages. The only other form of legal entry for migrants was through family reunification of spouses and dependants. Consequently, an issue of increasing concern is the rise of general irregular migration as well as human trafficking and sex tourism between Latin America and Europe. This issue particularly affects Southern European states such as Spain.
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Non-Governmental Organizations The concerns of the Regional Network for Civil Organizations on Migration (RNCOM) typify those of most migrant NGO’s in emphasizing the need for states to respect and protect the rights of migrants and their families regardless of legal status. RNCOM works in partnership with member states of the Regional Conference on Migration and includes nongovernmental organizations from all member states committed to addressing migration issues.
At the tenth annual vice-ministerial meeting
of the RCM in March 2005, RNCOM stressed the need for member states to promote “programs regularizing their status so that migrants are able to fully exercise their civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. Human rights are universal and make no distinction between citizens and non-citizens.”72
International human rights
organizations such as Amnesty International stress the establishment of migration policies that recognize the fundamental human rights of those in transit. NGOs supporting migrants also support policies that foster economic development in sending states.
Home Town Associations in particular support governmental initiatives that
complement and enhance their small town developmental projects.
Business Interests Economic migration, at its core, is a function of the laws of supply and demand. Sending states have a surplus of available labor coupled with a dearth of available production, whereas host states are those that seek low-cost labor to support a sector of its economy. It is businesses, therefore, that drive a significant portion of migrants to relocate to developed states. Without business interests willing to pay people, there would be limited benefit that could be derived from relocating across long distances.
72
“Declaration of the Regional Network for Civil Organization on Migration (RNCOM) at the Tenth Regional Conference on Migration,” Regional Conference on Migration, http://www.rcmvs.org/RNCOM_DeclarationMarch9.htm (accessed February 7, 2006)
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Developed Host States Firms based in major host states favor migration policies that have the most beneficial impact on the overall economy.
Protectionist migration laws lead to
inefficiencies in labor markets by hindering the free international movement of labor. These businesses support the liberalization of migration policies because even small increases in migrant flows produce economic gains for migrants and lower costs for firms, and reducing barriers of labor movement ultimately leads to global economic growth. In higher-wage states, the influx of migrants increases the total supply of labor, which lowers overall wages and reduces labor costs for businesses.
These savings
translate to lower prices and higher profits for domestic firms, which has a net positive impact on the economic growth of the labor-importing state. Reduced labor costs of highly skilled workers translate to significant savings that firms in developed states can reinvest in further innovation and expansion. Highly skilled immigrants also fill labor shortages that occur in certain industries, as European immigration policy promotes. Overall, businesses in labor-importing developed states are not detrimentally affected by increased international migration and favor broadening immigration policies.
Developing Origin States In developing states, large migrant outflows affect various sectors of the economy in different ways. In contrast to developed host states, the emigration of workers from developing states should reduce the domestic labor supply, drive up wages and increase labor costs for businesses, although structural problems plaguing most developing states inhibit this natural tendency. Many Latin American and Caribbean states face increased population growth coupled with widespread unemployment. Emigration is ineffective in increasing wages when unemployment is prevalent as replacement labor is readily available, although it reduces pressures to some extent on the domestic labor market.73 High emigration rates have a beneficial impact on the small-business sector of developing
73
Ibid, 173
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states in Latin America and the Caribbean as emigration induces remittance flows. The small business sector creates employment opportunities for millions of workers in Latin American and Caribbean states. Many small businesses in developing states of the region lack a sufficient amount of investment and operating capital, and remittances serve as a source of funding for firms owned by migrants and managed by their families. These firms benefit from programs that foster ties with transnational migrant communities to promote domestic economic development in the small business sector. Small businesses in developing states prefer policies that loosen restrictions on remittance flows and encourage migrants to invest in their home states. High emigration rates have detrimental effects on large-enterprises in developing states, most acutely in the case of highly skilled workers. In these states, such workers are instrumental in fueling innovation and developing technology that increases the competitiveness of large firms on a global or even regional scale. In addition, these firms often rely heavily on foreign direct investment to expand their businesses, and the emigration of highly skilled workers reduces incentives for foreigners to invest in developing states. On the other hand, highly skilled laborers that only temporarily emigrate to gain education and experience bring back valuable human capital that benefit large businesses.
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Summary Increasing international migration will lead to a net positive impact on world economic growth, but has differing impacts on developing states and developed states that are the traditional sending and receiving states of migrants respectively. Latin American and Caribbean are generally developing states with high emigration rates. These states benefit from the departure of unskilled workers as they reduce unemployment pressures and support the flow of remittances in the domestic economy; however the loss of highly skilled workers severely inhibits future prospects for technological innovation and economic growth that states badly need to alleviate long standing structural problems. Developed states benefit from the immigration of highly skilled workers and their immigration policies have become increasingly selective towards the highly skilled. These protectionist policies often leave family reunification as the only other viable means for legal entry. Irregular migration including human trafficking is on the rise in Latin America and the Caribbean, illustrating that restrictive immigration policies cannot fully counter the disparity in wages and opportunities that drives migration between developed and developing states.
Both developing and developed states must address
the related issue of who is ultimately responsible for protecting migrants’ rights and freedoms as well. The international nature of migration emphasizes the need for multilateral dialogue between all affected states to effectively address different concerns.
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Discussion Questions • How has globalization impacted migration patterns in recent years? Does this affect how states should approach the formation and implementation of migration policy? • Are multi-lateral agreements more effective than bi-lateral pacts in promoting regional cooperation between states in Latin America and the Caribbean? • Are developed states morally responsible for helping developing states cope with the loss of highly skilled workers due to the brain drain? • Are restrictive immigration policies of developed states favoring security effective at deterring irregular migration? • What do Latin American and Caribbean states stand to gain by not hindering emigration? What are their potential losses? • How should states address the issue of migrants’ rights? Is ensuring the rights and freedoms of migrants more the responsibility of sending state or receiving state? • How can Latin American and Caribbean states harness the potential of transnational networks? • What are the economic implications of increased liberalization of labor migration? • What initiatives can ECLAC take to address policy concerns of both Latin American and developed states? • What priorities should states set in addressing migration-related issues? Are security concerns more pressing than human trafficking concerns? Should potential economic benefits be favored at the expense of human rights’ issues? • Do states have the fundamental right to restrict an individual’s freedom to relocate within their borders?
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Works Cited “Declaration of the Regional Network for Civil Organization on Migration (RNCOM) at the Tenth Regional Conference on Migration,” Regional Conference on Migration, http://www.rcmvs.org/RNCOM_Declaration-March9.htm Docquier, F. and H. Rapoport. “Skilled migration: the perspective of developing countries. Policy, research working paper series, no. WPS3382 (2004). The World Bank, http://econ.worldbank.org. Eelens, Frank C. “The Land of Milk and Honey? Recent Migration to Aruba.” In Regional and International Migration in the Caribbean and its Impact on Sustainable Development. 2005, 1-19. Caribbean Expert Group Meeting on Migration. Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. Conference (September 14-15, 2005). Ghosh, Bimal. “Economic Effects of International Migration: A Synoptic Overview.” In World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, edited by Irena Omelaniuk et al., 163-183. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2005. Hamilton, Kimberly A. et al. “Migration Trends and Patterns in the Americas.” In World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, edited by Irena Omelaniuk et al., 82-101. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2005. Karemera, David et al. “A gravity model analysis of international migration to North America.” Applied Economics, no. 32 (2000): 1745-1755. Laczko, Frank. “Enhancing the Benefits of Return Migration for Development.” In World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, edited by Irena Omelaniuk et al., 287-296. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2005. Martin, Philip. “Economic Costs and Benefits of International Labour Migration.” In World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, edited by Irena Omelaniuk et al., 184-201. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2005.
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Mirkin, Barry. “International Migration Policies: An Overview.” In Regional and International Migration in the Caribbean and its Impact on Sustainable Development. 2005, 38-52. Caribbean Expert Group Meeting on Migration. Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. Conference (September 14-15, 2005). Mora, J. and J. Taylor. “Determinants of Migration, Destination, and Sector Choice: Disentangling Individual, Household and Community Effects” in International Migration, Remittances & the Brain Drain, edited by Caglar Ozden and Maurice Schiff, 21-51. Washington: The World Bank, 2006. Morner, Magnus. Adventurers and Proletarians: The Story of Migrants in Latin America. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1985. Munz, Rainer and J. van Selm. “Migrants in an Enlarged Europe.” In World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, edited by Irena Omelaniuk et al., 139-160. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2005. Office of the Press Secretary, “Fact Sheet: Fair and Secure Immigration Reform,” The White House, http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/01/200401071.html Orozco, Manuel. “Latino Hometown Associations as Agents of Development in Latin America.” In Sending Money Home: Hispanic Remittances and Community Development, edited by Rodolfo O. de la Graza and B. Lowell, 85-99. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc, 2002. Orozco, Manuel. “Migrant Hometown Associations (HTAs) – The Human Face of Globalization.” In World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, edited by Irena Omelaniuk et al., 279-285. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2005. Ozden, C. and M. Schiff. “Overview” in International Migration, Remittances & the Brain Drain, edited by Caglar Ozden and Maurice Schiff, 1-18. Washington: The World Bank, 2006. Pellegrino, Adela. “Brain drain, mobility and circulation: new forms of skilled migration.” In International migration and development in the Americas. 2001, 224-249. Symposium on International Migration in the Americas. Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. Conference (September 2000).
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Pellegrino, Adela. Migration from Latin America: Trends and Policy Challenges. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2004. Pizarro, Jorge M. “International Migration in Latin America and the Caribbean: Facts and Findings.” In Regional and International Migration in the Caribbean and its Impact on Sustainable Development. 2005, 20-37. Caribbean Expert Group Meeting on Migration. Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. Conference (September 14-15, 2005). “Plan of Action,” Regional Conference on Migration, http://www.rcmvs.org/plande.htm Ratha, Dilip. “Migrant Remittances as a Source of Development Finance.” In World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, edited by Irena Omelaniuk et al., 269-277. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2005. “Regional Conference on Migration (RCM),” Regional Conference on Migration, http://www.rcmvs.org/pagina_n.htm Solimano, Andres. Globalizing talent and human capital: implications for developing countries. Santiago: United Nations, 2002. Solimano, Andres. “Remittances by emigrants: issues and evidence.” Macroeconomia del desarrollo, no. 26 (2003). The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, via ECLAC Library, http://www.eclac.cl/biblioteca/default.asp?lang=english&page=information Von Koppenfels, Amanda K. The Role of Regoinal Consultative Processes in Managing International Migration. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2001.
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Works Referenced Alvarado, Ivan Gonzalez. “Migration in Latin America and the Caribbean: A view from the ICFTU/ORIT,” International Labour Organization. http://www.ilo.org/public/english/dialogue/actrav/publ/129/19.pdf. Accessed 21 July 2006. “Declaration of the Regional Network for Civil Organization on Migration (RNCOM) at the Tenth Regional Conference on Migration,” Regional Conference on Migration, http://www.rcmvs.org/RNCOM_Declaration-March9.htm Docquier, F. and H. Rapoport. “Skilled migration: the perspective of developing countries. Policy, research working paper series, no. WPS3382 (2004). The World Bank, http://econ.worldbank.org. Eelens, Frank C. “The Land of Milk and Honey? Recent Migration to Aruba.” In Regional and International Migration in the Caribbean and its Impact on Sustainable Development. 2005, 1-19. Caribbean Expert Group Meeting on Migration. Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. Conference (September 14-15, 2005). Ghosh, Bimal. “Economic Effects of International Migration: A Synoptic Overview.” In World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, edited by Irena Omelaniuk et al., 163-183. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2005. Hamilton, Kimberly A. et al. “Migration Trends and Patterns in the Americas.” In World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, edited by Irena Omelaniuk et al., 82-101. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2005. Karemera, David et al. “A gravity model analysis of international migration to North America.” Applied Economics, no. 32 (2000): 1745-1755. Laczko, Frank. “Enhancing the Benefits of Return Migration for Development.” In World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, edited by Irena Omelaniuk et al., 287-296. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2005. Marmora, Lelio. International Migration Policies and Programmes. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 1999.
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Martin, Philip. “Economic Costs and Benefits of International Labour Migration.” In World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, edited by Irena Omelaniuk et al., 184-201. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2005. Migration, Remittances and Small Business Development – Mexico and Caribbean Basin Countries, edited by Sergio Diaz-Briquets and Sidney Wentraub. Boulder: Westview Press, 1991. The Migration-Development Nexus, edited by Nicholas Van Hear and Ninna Nyberg Sorensen. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2003. Mirkin, Barry. “International Migration Policies: An Overview.” In Regional and International Migration in the Caribbean and its Impact on Sustainable Development. 2005, 38-52. Caribbean Expert Group Meeting on Migration. Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. Conference (September 14-15, 2005). Mora, J. and J. Taylor. “Determinants of Migration, Destination, and Sector Choice: Disentangling Individual, Household and Community Effects” in International Migration, Remittances & the Brain Drain, edited by Caglar Ozden and Maurice Schiff, 21-51. Washington: The World Bank, 2006. Morner, Magnus. Adventurers and Proletarians: The Story of Migrants in Latin America. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1985. Munz, Rainer and J. van Selm. “Migrants in an Enlarged Europe.” In World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, edited by Irena Omelaniuk et al., 139-160. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2005. Office of the Press Secretary, “Fact Sheet: Fair and Secure Immigration Reform,” The White House, http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/01/200401071.html Orozco, Manuel. “Latino Hometown Associations as Agents of Development in Latin America.” In Sending Money Home: Hispanic Remittances and Community Development, edited by Rodolfo O. de la Graza and B. Lowell, 85-99. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc, 2002.
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Orozco, Manuel. “Migrant Hometown Associations (HTAs) – The Human Face of Globalization.” In World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, edited by Irena Omelaniuk et al., 279-285. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2005. Ozden, C. and M. Schiff. “Overview” in International Migration, Remittances & the Brain Drain, edited by Caglar Ozden and Maurice Schiff, 1-18. Washington: The World Bank, 2006. Pellegrino, Adela. “Brain drain, mobility and circulation: new forms of skilled migration.” In International migration and development in the Americas. 2001, 224-249. Symposium on International Migration in the Americas. Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. Conference (September 2000). Pellegrino, Adela. Migration from Latin America: Trends and Policy Challenges. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2004. Pizarro, Jorge M. “International Migration in Latin America and the Caribbean: Facts and Findings.” In Regional and International Migration in the Caribbean and its Impact on Sustainable Development. 2005, 20-37. Caribbean Expert Group Meeting on Migration. Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. Conference (September 14-15, 2005). “Plan of Action,” Regional Conference on Migration, http://www.rcmvs.org/plande.htm Ratha, Dilip. “Migrant Remittances as a Source of Development Finance.” In World Migration 2005: Costs and Benefits of International Migration, edited by Irena Omelaniuk et al., 269-277. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2005. “Regional Conference on Migration (RCM),” Regional Conference on Migration, http://www.rcmvs.org/pagina_n.htm Solimano, Andres. Globalizing talent and human capital: implications for developing countries. Santiago: United Nations, 2002. Solimano, Andres. “Remittances by emigrants: issues and evidence.” Macroeconomia del desarrollo, no. 26 (2003). The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, via ECLAC Library, http://www.eclac.cl/biblioteca/default.asp?lang=english&page=information
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“Tenth Meeting of the Regional Conference on Migration (RCM),” Regional Conference on Migration, http://www.rcmvs.org/pagina_n1.htm Von Koppenfels, Amanda K. The Role of Regoinal Consultative Processes in Managing International Migration. Geneva: International Organization for Migration, 2001. “What Surprised You Most About Migration in 2005? Top Experts Respond,” Migration Information Source, December 1, 2005, Migration Policy Institute, http://www.migrationinformation.org/Feature/display.cfm?ID=361