Remittances and labor supply of the left-behind youth: Evidence from Kyrgyzstan

Jorge Dávalos, Kamalbek Karymshakov, Burulcha Sulaimanova, Raziiakhan Abdieva

Research output: Contribution to journalArticle in a journalpeer-review

7 Scopus citations

Abstract

This paper examines whether remittances from international migration impact on the occupational choice of left-behind youth in Kyrgyzstan. Labor supply is analyzed both at the extensive and intensive margins using cross-sectional data for 2011. To overcome endogeneity concerns, an instrumental variable approach was implemented. Findings demonstrate that migration, rather than remittances, pushes the left-behind youth to become unpaid family workers. This is explained by the substitution effect as the youth left behind are called upon to replace the migrant labor. Moreover, this effect is heterogeneous - female youth are more inclined to becoming unpaid family workers both at the extensive and intensive margins.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)352-380
Number of pages29
JournalAsian and Pacific Migration Journal
Volume26
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Jan 2017

Keywords

  • Kyrgyzstan
  • Labor supply
  • Remittances
  • Youth

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