Migrant Remittances and Human Security

The estimated number of people who live in a country other than their country of birth has raised over the past five decades. With the rising number of migrants around the world, one of the significant implications of migrant movements, international remittances have increased over time and exceeded the level of official development aid described as government assistance dedicated to advance the economic development and prosperity of developing countries. Consistent with the rising level of international remittances, a proliferation of research examining the impact of remittances on development in remittance-recipient countries has occurred in recent years. While the effects of remittances upon development in recipient states have been broadly studied, the relationship between remittances and human security in remittance-recipient countries has been insufficiently investigated. In order to fill this gap, this study theoretically discusses and empirically examines the link between migrant remittances and human security. It argues that remittances enhance human security by providing remittance-recipients with extra income to meet their socioeconomic needs and increase their personal safety, which enable them to free from want and free from fear. The findings of quantitative analysis conducted based on a global data set show evidence that migrant remittances improve human security in remittance-recipient countries.