International migration and the change of women's position among the left‐behind in rural Bangladesh

Abstract

While the impact of remittances upon the economic conditions of the sending communities has received much attention, the effects of international migration on women's position in society among the leftbehind have not been adequately explored. This paper examines the changes in the leftbehind women's position at the family level as a result of the migration of adult men overseas. Data came from a demographic surveillance system covering 70 villages in Bangladesh. All migrant families having at least one male member working abroad for more than six months were identi®ed in the study villages in 1996. A comparable number of non-migrant families were selected at random from the same villages to yield a total sample of 1030 families. In-depth interviews were conducted with adult women of the sample families. Findings reveal that the overseas migration of adult males has a signi®cant positive association with women's decision-making capacity and education of girls in the migrant families. The remittances as well as the in¯uence of secular values have reduced the practice of dowry in marriages. Multivariate analysis suggests not only that remittances have increased the ®nancial capacity of the migrant families, but also that secular in¯uences from overseas might have modi®ed the position of women when the role of other socio-economic factors is controlled. The study concludes that the overseas migration of adult men can create a context for change of the women's position in traditional communities.

Rethinking Migration-Development Nexus: A Case of Bangladeshi Migrants’ Households

“…Migrant families are more likely to send their children in school because they are capable of paying fees and other educational expenses for their children. Moreover, the rate of girls' education among the migrants' households is higher than non-migrants households because of cultural exchange like secular value which aspires and modifies the traditional cultural practice of dowry (Hadi, 2001). It is obvious that migrants' households possess a good quality of life as compared to those non-migrants households who had the same social and economic background before migration of the former group of households.…”

“…The wives of migrants can decide and participate in the decision-making processes that are higher than those of women in non-migrants households (Hadi, 2001; UNDP, 2009). Men's absence in the households has led some women to play a new role in male domain and as a result they become capable of making decision (Gardner, 1995) and the decision-making probability is 3.39 times higher compared to the wives of non-migrants where age, years of schooling, land ownership and religious beliefs of household members are controlled (Hadi, 2001). Women as left behind wives become empower because they receive and control remittances sent by their husbands and due to this they dominate to control over other resources of households.…”

“…Migration of household head and/or any other important person stops to continuing study of younger family members because of lack of proper care and guidance (Hadi, 2001;Hossain et al 2013). Many children particularly elder daughters of women migrants drop out schools as they take care of their younger siblings and do household activities in the absence of their mothers which migrants could do (Siddiqui, 2001).…”

How do female migration and gender discrimination in social institutions mutually influence each other?

“…For example, Hadi (2001) explains that male migration has a significant positive effect on women's empowerment. Changes in women's position are measured by three indicators: women's decision-making capacity; girls' education; and the practice of dowry.…”

In the absence of their men: Women and forest management in the Mid-hills of Nepal

“…Male outmigration has been widely reported as one mediating factor that can bring forth negotiations and social transformations by (re)structuring traditional gender roles, thus leading to increased access to resources, greater decision-making powers [10][11][12] and women's active involvement in community development activities and farming [12,13].…”