Domestic Workers and Remittances: Gender, Family Dynamics and Development in Indonesia

Remittances are now recognized as an important contributor to development. This is obvious from the volume of discussion on migration, remittances and development at both national and international levels, and from the burgeoning evidence regarding the significance of migration and remittances to some developing countries. However, there have been very few studies that disaggregate remittances by the sex of remitters and recipients; therefore, little empirical evidence exists on whether or not gender matters in the remittance process, especially in the ability to remit, the control over remitted cash, the use and development outcomes of remittances at the family level. This book attempts to contribute to this understudied area by documenting the experiences of Indonesian domestic workers in East and Southeast Asia. The analysis should help shed light on some key issues such as gender and remittances, remittance and development, and remittances and family dynamics from a multidisciplinary perspective, and should be especially useful to researchers, policy makers, and the general public, who are keen on an update situation of contemporary migration in Asia.