This thesis examines the contribution of the Moroccan Diaspora to the development of Morocco, focusing on factors beyond economic remittances. Provided that economic remittances have received large...Show moreThis thesis examines the contribution of the Moroccan Diaspora to the development of Morocco, focusing on factors beyond economic remittances. Provided that economic remittances have received large attention from academia, this work aims to narrow the research gap by looking at other factors influencing the developmental potential of Moroccan migration, including “brain drain” (highly skilled human capital flight), the Moroccan government’s ‘Diaspora engagement policy’, and the case study of Moroccans in the Netherlands. The thesis draws upon a mix of primary and secondary sources to emphasise the active role of the Moroccan government in maximising the developmental potential of migration through a comprehensive Diaspora engagement policy. Continuing, it discusses the role of economic remittances on the development of housing, which has triggered economic growth and the emergence of new urban centres in historically isolated regions of Morocco, thus, raising living standards and expanding educational opportunities in rural areas of Morocco. Finally, this thesis demonstrates that Morocco is taking serious steps towards reducing the negative effects of the “brain drain” through programmes specifically aimed at increasing cooperation with and incentivizing the return of highly skilled Moroccan migrants. By exploring the implications of Moroccan migration beyond economic remittances, this thesis provides an overall picture of the various migration-related factors at play in the development of Morocco. It aims to highlight the significance of other factors often overshadowed by an overwhelmingly large focus on economic remittances alone in academia.Show less
In recent years, remittances, the sum of money sent by migrant workers to families back home, have emerged as the major source of external development finance. In 2007, remittances from migrant...Show moreIn recent years, remittances, the sum of money sent by migrant workers to families back home, have emerged as the major source of external development finance. In 2007, remittances from migrant workers doubled the size of Direct Foreign Aid and in 2017 migrant sending countries received over US$450 billion, 10 times more than what they’ve received 20 years earlier. Despite the wide range of studies conducted on the monetary effects of labour migration and remittances through the neoclassical immigration theory lenses, which claims that international migration “is a win-win situation”, less attention is drawn onto the moral hazard problem and the culture of dependency that the same issues bring about. Guided by the research question: What are the effects of Overseas Filipino Workers’ remittances on public service provision in the Philippines? My research aims to engage the reader into a critical re-thinking process of the nature of migration and remittances. I wish to argue that it is pivotal to consider the wider concept of labor migration and the burden relegated by migrant-sending governments to “their” citizens on the move. If remittances “do the job”, what is the role of the State? Is it the diaspora's to provide for their country? The underlying scope of the thesis is to test whether skepticists' speculations that remittances “are not a panacea” but rather a strategy for governments to decrease their accountability towards their citizens and ultimately to evaluate whether the public moral hazard problem holds to the Philippine case too.Show less
This thesis serves to collate and analyse the most relevant literature on the relationship between remittances and economic growth by observing GDP increases attributed to the reception and use of...Show moreThis thesis serves to collate and analyse the most relevant literature on the relationship between remittances and economic growth by observing GDP increases attributed to the reception and use of remittances in developing countries. The findings conclude that across the literature similar themes and suggestions are repeated, and this paper distils these findings to two key factors which appear to garner the most benefit from remittances: (1) That remittances be facilitated; and (2) that remittances be utilised. If both conditions are met, we identify that remittances appear to help to economic growth, if these conditions are not met, remittances can be a hinderance to economic growth. The facilitation and utilisation of remittances can only be made possible by government intervention through remittance-based and other, macroeconomic policy. These policies can only be supported by a government which is democratic, corruption-free and is committed to good governance. Nigeria and Morocco are used as case studies to demonstrate this relationship as Nigeria has lax policies regarding remittances overall, while Morocco has strong facilitation policies, but poor utilisation of remittances for economic growth.Show less
This thesis explores the link between migration and food security in Egypt, both in the short and longer term. Instead of relying on predictions and extrapolations typical of traditional...Show moreThis thesis explores the link between migration and food security in Egypt, both in the short and longer term. Instead of relying on predictions and extrapolations typical of traditional forecasting techniques, it uses the novel concept of 'scenario'. The question guiding this research can be summarized as follows: "What do the certainties and uncertainties of possible future migration trends reveal about food security issues in Egypt?". The research results in two scenario matrices, of which two possible scenario outcomes are further elaborated on.Show less
