ABSTRACT
The role of remittances in improving certain outcomes for children is a matter of controversy that draws significantly divergent views. To date, there are mixed findings about whether remittances improve material, education and health outcomes for children or generate sustainable development outcomes for communities. At present, poverty and limited viable employment options in labour-sending countries are creating conditions where parents often have to ‘choose’ between migrating to provide for their children’s economic needs and being physically present to raise their children. Transnational movement in the era of globalisation has been characterised by the mass movement of workers across borders with the simultaneous mass restriction of the rights afforded to migrant workers and their families. Variation in the objectives and constraints leads to different ‘national policy spaces’ and labour immigration policy regimes that vary both across the countries and over time.
