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      Moving to opportunity, leaving behind what? Evaluating the initial effects of a migration policy on incomes and poverty in source areas

      McKenzie, David; Gibson, John; Stillman, Steven
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      McKenzie, D., Gibson, J. & Stillman, S. (2007). Moving to opportunity, leaving behind what? Evaluating the initial effects of a migration policy on incomes and poverty in source areas. (Department of Economics Working Paper Series, Number 23/07). Hamilton, New Zealand: University of Waikato.
      Permanent Research Commons link: https://hdl.handle.net/10289/1601
      Abstract
      Migration to New Zealand and consequent remittance inflows are dominant features of many Pacific Island countries. Evaluating the effect of these people and money flows on incomes and poverty in the Pacific is potentially complicated by the non-random selection of emigrants. This paper uses the randomization provided by an immigration ballot under the Pacific Access Category (PAC) of New Zealand’s immigration policy to address this problem. We survey applicants to the 2002-05 PAC ballots in Tonga and compare outcomes for the remaining family of emigrants with those for similar families who were unsuccessful in the ballots. We then contrast these estimates with more conventional ones that construct no-emigration counterfactuals by deducting remittance income from the remaining family of PAC emigrants and adding back the potential home earnings of emigrants. The results suggest that the economic welfare of remaining family may fall in the initial period after members of their household move to New Zealand. We also find that non-experimental methods of constructing counterfactual income are likely to work well only in rare situations where there is random selection of emigrants.
      Date
      2007-11
      Type
      Working Paper
      Series
      Department of Economics Working Paper Series
      Report No.
      23/07
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      • Management Papers [1135]
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