Remittances and Economic Justice: Alternatives Beyond the Migration-Development Nexus

Remittances, as one of the significant drivers of recent Migration-Development Regimes (MDRs), have emerged as a crucial aspect of the financial landscape of developing countries especially in the global south. At times, remittances have even been considered a quantitative measure of brain gain to the home economy, justifiably compensating for the brain drain. Asia has been the largest remittance receiving continent in the world with more than half of it flowing to South Asia from the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, the US, UK, Canada, Australia and the European Union. From the perspective of wealth redistribution, migration accompanied by remittances, serves to redistribute considerable wealth from wealthy to poor countries. This article is an attempt to explore the intricate relationship of migration, development and economic justice through the lens of remittances keeping sending countries on the focal point. Millions of migrants send financial support back to their home countries which contributes in their socio-economic development. However, these benefits of remittances are unevenly distributed, reflecting the prevailing inequalities and need of redistribution. Through selective case studies of Asian countries and using data from World Bank, UN-DESA and Asian Development Bank, the article highlights the complexities of economic justice and equitable approach to remittance flows and migration management in developing countries. While addressing the governance issues relating to the changing migration and remittance management of countries involved and the consequent economic and political challenges, it examines the strengthening "audibility" of what Khadria had elsewhere called the "silent backwash of reverse remittances". The paper uses its findings to discuss the prospective policy recommendations for innovations in multilateral negotiations between the stakeholders comprising the "whole of society" and the "whole of government" in pursuit of economic justice across nations.