Gender and Remittance Flows in Vietnam During Economic Transformation

Abstract

Since the 1990s, Vietnam has experienced a dramatic growth in remittance flows. This paper uses the Vietnam Living Standard Surveys for 1992/93 and 1997/98 to study the role of gender in these remittance flows, both from the perspective of receiving and sending remittances. Knowing about gender differences will help to better explain the impact of remittances and to understand the nature of gender roles during a time of economic transformation. We find important distinctions, such as a responsibility among women for the intergenerational transfers of remittances (particularly between parents and children) while men tend to take more responsibility for intragenerational remittances. As well, after controlling for other factors and sharing remittances between spouses who live together, we find evidence that women have a higher likelihood to both send and receive remittances.