More women migrating for a living: UN study
Unlike in the past, when women migrated mostly to wed, a large number of them are now migrating for work.
By TNN |
NEW DELHI: The number of people living outside their own country of birth is larger than at any time in history. If all the international migrants were to be put in one country, they would constitute the fifth-most populous country in the world, bigger than Brazil. Of this huge migrant population, nearly 50% — or 95 million — are women.
At the release of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) report titled State of the World Population 2006 on women and international migration, UNFPA representative Ena Singh expressed concern over inadequate focus on the human rights of migrants, especially women migrants, who are often disenfranchised and abused in the process of migration. She also felt that the advantages that migration brought was not really well understood.
Unlike in the past, when women migrated mostly to wed, a large number of them are now migrating for work, said Singh. In Asia, the number of women migrating from some countries has surpassed that of males, states the report. In the Philippines, nearly 65% of those who left the country for work were women. In Sri Lanka, there were two women for every male emigrant in 2002. Between 2000 and 2003, about 70% of those who left Indonesia to work abroad were woman. Domestic work is the largest sector driving international women labour migration.
Women also tend to send a much larger share of their earnings home than the men. A 2000 study by a UN organisation showed Bangladeshi women send home 72% of their earnings. These remittances have a great role in poverty reduction and development, says the UNFPA report.
At the release of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) report titled State of the World Population 2006 on women and international migration, UNFPA representative Ena Singh expressed concern over inadequate focus on the human rights of migrants, especially women migrants, who are often disenfranchised and abused in the process of migration. She also felt that the advantages that migration brought was not really well understood.
Unlike in the past, when women migrated mostly to wed, a large number of them are now migrating for work, said Singh. In Asia, the number of women migrating from some countries has surpassed that of males, states the report. In the Philippines, nearly 65% of those who left the country for work were women. In Sri Lanka, there were two women for every male emigrant in 2002. Between 2000 and 2003, about 70% of those who left Indonesia to work abroad were woman. Domestic work is the largest sector driving international women labour migration.
Women also tend to send a much larger share of their earnings home than the men. A 2000 study by a UN organisation showed Bangladeshi women send home 72% of their earnings. These remittances have a great role in poverty reduction and development, says the UNFPA report.
Download
The Economic Times Business News App for the Latest News in Business, Sensex, Stock Market Updates & More.
The Economic Times Business News App for the Latest News in Business, Sensex, Stock Market Updates & More.
Download
The Economic Times News App for Quarterly Results, Latest News in ITR, Business, Share Market, Live Sensex News & More.
The Economic Times News App for Quarterly Results, Latest News in ITR, Business, Share Market, Live Sensex News & More.
ADVERTISEMENT
