Gender, Migration and Remittances

51_10 Representing the second largest source of external funding for developing countries, remittances – money transfers by migrants to their relatives or other persons in countries of origin – are recognized by governments and international organizations as important tools for reducing household poverty and enhancing local development.1 However, it is often implicitly assumed in research, policy and programmes on the issue that patterns of sending and using remittances are genderneutral. In reality though, gender not only influences who migrates, when, where, why and how, it also affects the amount and frequency of remittances which migrants send home, as well as how the money is used.