Using Remittance Transaction Data for Timely Estimation of the Foreign Worker Population in Malaysia

Ahmad, Zainab Binti Ali ; Simler, Kenneth ; Yi, Soonhwa

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: MIGRATION;    IMMIGRATION;    MIGRANT LABOR;    REMITTANCES;    FOREIGN WORKERS;   

DOI  :  10.1596/1813-9450-9331
RP-ID  :  WPS9331

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

Malaysia has been grappling withunderstanding how many foreign workers reside in the countryand thus faces challenges in formulating evidence-basedforeign worker policies. This paper uses micro-levelremittance transaction data collected from money transferservice providers to estimate the number of foreign workers.Most foreign workers remit a large portion of their earningsto support family members back home. They are low-incomeearners, sensitive to remittance costs, and opt for moneytransfer service providers to remit money rather thanregular banks, where transfer services are more expensive.Therefore, the remittance data provide a useful source toconduct the investigation. Existing estimates range from twomillion to five million foreign workers; our results narrowthat range to between 2.99 million and 3.16 million foreignworkers in Malaysia as of 2017-18. The estimated state andnationality distributions of foreign workers are consistentwith the Ministry of Home Affairs data, lending support tothe validity of the estimates. Nevertheless, the Bank NegaraMalaysia remittance data could potentially underestimate thenumber of workers in states with low access to money serviceproviders and nationalities that have access to alternativemoney transfer mechanisms such as commercial banking andinformal transfer channels.