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THE
number of women migrants from Asian nations, including
those from the Philippines, is now lower than the number
of female migrants from other regions counting from
1960, according to the latest report of the World Bank
group on the international migration of women.
Asia is
the only region in the world that posted a drop in the
share of female migrants to 43 percent in 2005 from 46
percent in 1960.
The
largest increases in the proportion of women during the
period were in Oceania, to 51 percent in 2005 from 44
percent in 1960; Latin America and the Caribbean, 50
percent from 45 percent; Africa, 47 percent from 42
percent; and the former Soviet Union to 58 percent from
48 percent.
The
World Bank report said that overall, women migrants have
steadily increased during the past 45 years but the
overall increase has been modest, about 6.6 percent
since 1960.
World
Bank Gender Group lead economist Andrew Morrison said in
a statement, “The fact that women now account for almost
half the total migrant population is having enormous
effects on development.”
“Women
are sending lots of money to their families back home,
and evidence from rural Mexico shows that their
migration leads to positive economic effects for the
homes they leave behind,” he added.
Between
1960 and 2005, the percentage of international migrants
who are women increased by almost 3 percentage points to
49.6 percent from 46.7 percent, for a total number of
approximately 95 million women.
The
number of international migrants in the world doubled
during this period. In 2005 there were about 190 million
migrants, roughly 3 percent of the world’s population.
The
World Bank said that another reason for this increased
interest has been the rapid growth in remittances,
currently amounting to approximately $200 billion a
year.
The
study said that several Asian countries, such as the
Philippines, Vietnam, India and China, are home
countries for more than 200,000 migrants each or a total
of 800,000 migrants on the average.
The
study also noted that Asian cities attract large numbers
of nurses and domestic-service workers from the
Philippines and that many of these migrant workers have
obtained tertiary education.
Further,
migrant labor recruiters in the Philippines match men
and women with specific kinds of jobs abroad. Men
typically are employed in professional jobs, while women
work in domestic services or become part of the health
profession.
“The
probability of obtaining a job as a lawyer is lower for
Philippine female than for male migrants, while the
probability of obtaining a nursing job is higher for
female than for male migrants,” the study added. |
