Migration and development: the effects of remittances on education and health of family members left behind for the case of Kosovo
Migration and development: the effects of remittances on education and health of family members left behind for the case of Kosovo

Summary/Abstract: Kosovo as many other states in the region is known for its high dependency on remittances. Due to the social and political turmoil that Kosovo was facing from the Yugoslav state authorities during the 1980’s and especially during the 1990s, many people lost their jobs, having as a drastic increase of the number of Kosovars migrating abroad. The civil war of 1999 contributed even more to this trend. In general, the migration wave from Kosovo to developed countries of Western Europe such as Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy and other developed countries such as USA was motivated by both political and economical factors. The high level of unemployment, high poverty rates, and the low standard of living made people pursue a better life somewhere else. Now more than 20% of Kosovars live outside Kosovo, which are more than 400,000 people. Following the massive conflict-related and war-related emigration, remittances became and continue to be a significant source of household income. For instance, the inflow of remittances in Kosovo was 535 million Euros in 2008, which accounts for 14.1 percent of GDP, making Kosovo one of the largest recipients of remittances in the Western Balkans. According to the Kosovo Remittance Study by UNDP (2010), it was suggested that remittances not only affect positively the level of income, but also the ability to access healthcare and education it was not suggested how much and how significant this effect was. Thus, due to the lack of data this effect could not be measured and it is not known how significant it is.

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