Study on Remittances and Household Finances in the Philippines and Tajikistan

Since 2013, the inflows of overseas remittances into developing countries have reached more than 400 billion dollars. There is a growing interest on how overseas remittances impact migrants’ countries of origin. This study will conduct a survey on migrants and their households and analyze the effects of overseas remittances sent by migrants working overseas on their household finances and whether such remittances are being channeled into investments into their hometowns. The study will focus on households in the Philippines and Tajikistan. For the Philippines where the government supports financial education for overseas migrant households, the study aims to provide policy recommendations on how to attract more investment from overseas migrants, as well as on measures related to reintegration of returnees. For Tajikistan, where the country heavily depends on remittance receipts, the study focuses on examining households’ coping strategies and their decisions on labour supply and household finances, especially given the decrease in remittance receipts due to external situations (e.g. Russia’s economic downturn, changes in exchange rates), as well as the lack of employment opportunities within the country.