© T. M. Whitmore

TODAY•Día de los muertos•Migration – the 3rd part of the

population equationInternational to/from LA USA-LA migrationRemittances

© T. M. Whitmore

LAST TIME- Questions?•Urbanization in LA

Causes & consequences•The urban dual economy•Migration – the 3rd part of the

population equationInternational within LA

Household alter for Día de los muertosHousehold alter for Día de los muertos

Commercial alter for Día de los muertosCommercial alter for Día de los muertos

Decorated Graves near Copan, Honduras

© T. M. Whitmore

Migration-the 3rd part of demography

•DefinitionsMore-or-less permanent change in

the locus of one’s lifeMust cross political boundary

•“Circulation” a temporary change in residence

© T. M. Whitmore

Migration — 4 major types•1st type: International within Latin

America•2nd type: International to and from

Latin America•3rd type rural => rural migration•4th type rural => urban migration

© T. M. Whitmore

International to and from Latin America

•Colonial migrations100s of thousands of IberiansForced migration of ~10 m Africans

•19th century migrationsEuropeans to S Brazil, Argentina,

Uruguay, Costa RicaAsian indentured labor to Caribbean &

Guyana, Surinam, etc.•Contemporary migrations

Caribbean, Ecuador, “el Norte”

© T. M. Whitmore

Example of International migration: Mexicans to US

•N limits of MexicoLoss of ½ of Mexican territory to US in war of 1840s

•Post-Mexican war in 1880s•1920s revolution and post-

revolution chaos in Mexico plus demand for ag workers in WWI in US => >500kBut small % of all immigration

© T. M. Whitmore

Example of International migration: Mexicans to US

II•1940s -1960s => Bracero program•1980s and beyond

Issue of illegal (undocumented)•Mexico — USA labor markets closely

coupled since 1880s•Spatial patterns of migration• Issue of remittances

Return migrant (remittance funded) housing in Ecuador© Brad Jokish

© T. M. Whitmore

Remittances-a global phenomena

•They are monies sent by workers in the more industrial countries to their homes in the global “south”

•~ 150 million migrants sent > US$ 300 billion globally in 2006

© T. M. Whitmore

Remittances to LA•About 30 million Latin American

migrants living in the United States & EuropeSend ~ US$68 billion to their

families annually! Average remittance per migrant ~

US$2,100•Average per capita remittance ~ 20%

of average per capita GDP•15 of 38 in LA countries receive >

US$ 1 b

© T. M. Whitmore

Remittance Origins in US•Top US sending states = CA, NY, FL,

IL, NJ (all over $1 billion annually)•N C over $800 million annually• Immigrants in US have total incomes

~ US$ 500 bAbout 10% of that is sent home but

90% is spent in the US locality •~ 60 of remittance senders are

“working poor” or lower middle class (incomes < $30k) – but most think economic life in US is good

© T. M. Whitmore

How is money sent?• Most send to their families through

international money transfer companies.These are costly: fees can run to 6-7% or

more (but these are low by global standards)

• Fewer than 50% of Latin Americans have bank accounts here or in home countriesThus some use professional viajeros

(travelers)• Agencies are now competing

IADB working to reduce fees and bottlenecks

In Durham, NC the Latino Community Credit Union charges from $6-10

© T. M. Whitmore

Remittance destinations in LA•Countries where remittances ~ 10%

of total country GDP Grenada ~31%Honduras ~25%El Salvador ~24%Haiti ~21%Dominican Republic ~18%Jamaica ~18%Nicaragua ~15%Belize ~11%Guatemala ~10%

© T. M. Whitmore

Remittances to LA & C•Exceed the combined flows of all

Foreign Direct Investment and net Official Development Assistance

•Flows substantially exceed tourism income to each country & almost always exceed the largest export

•Overall remittances ~13% of the value of all exports

•Large percentages (> 15%) of the adult population in many countries receive remittances

© T. M. Whitmore

Scale of remittance flows•Remittances to Mexico ~US$24

billionGreater than the country's total

tourism incomeGreater than 2/3 of the value of

petroleum exportsAbout equal to 180% of the

country's agricultural exports.

© T. M. Whitmore

Spending Remittances•Vast majority spent on household

expensesRural residents get ~ 1/3 of all

remittancesInvestments in real estate (houses)

increasing Also investments in small business

ventures

© T. M. Whitmore

Consequences & Issues•Social consequences to the Latin

American migrant workers’ familiesAbout 1/3 are undocumented thus

Visits home are fewWages and working conditions may be poor

Families are divided• Impacts in Latin America

Is this development or dependency?How many participate, does it

increase or decrease equity?

Global Totals:~$US 301 billion

Source: © IADB

Remittances: The Human Face of Globalization

Quiroga, Mexico

Source: © IADB

$1.2 b

$13.2 b

$5.2 b

$3.7 b

2006 estimates-note big increases

© Thomas Whitmore

Source: © IADB

Source: © IADB

© Thomas Whitmore

Return migrant (remittance funded) housing in Ecuador© Brad Jokish

© Thomas Whitmore

© Thomas Whitmore

© Thomas Whitmore