Remittance and socio-economic development of the Somali people in Kisenyi, Kampala
Loading...
Date
2011-11
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Kampala International University, College of Humanities and Social Sciences
Abstract
The purpose of the study was to determine the relationship between remittance and socio-economic development of its recipients in Kampala especially in Kisenyi, The
specific objectives included; to investigate the impact of remittance on microeconàmic development of families, to identify the contribution of remitted money to the family survival and to establish the relationship between the remittance and social development. The researcher used cross sectional survey design, and questionnaires to collect primary data. The study centers on the dependent variable which is social
development and the independent variable which is remittances. One hypothesis was
formulated and tested using various statistical tools such as Chi-Square. Stratified
random sampling was used to select respondents and data was analyzed using SPSS;
descriptive, correlations, and Chi-square testing.
Major findings are that out of 90% of the small businesses who get remittances from
abroad, SO% have improved in social services, and 40% have used remittances for
consumption and communication to their remitters; that there is a significant
relationship between use of remittances and social development that gender has a
direct relationship with the use of remittances in terms of social development, that 75%
of the household members survive on remittances from either a relative or members
working abroad. Basing on the findings, it can be concluded that the socio-demographic
characteristics contributes heavily to the use of remittances in relation to social
development. For instance it was found out that l7% of the respondents who pay
school fees for their children were women. There is a growing recognition that gender
plays an important role in the remittance process, as well as shaping their impacts in
the origin country environment.
The significance of remittance flows is highlighted by their volume, as well as the effect
that these transfers have on receiving households and their local and
nationaleconomies. However, very few studies exist on this topic, much less on the
xi
relationship between remittances and development. Therefore I recommend further
studies to discuss such a development agenda on remittances. The studies should
involve parties from governments, the business community, development players,
academics, and civil society groups working with migrants and aware of issues relating
to remittance transfer, As this study has illustrated, some migration-related policies potentially impact the flow of remittances. Many Somali nationals in Uganda rely on agencies to gain overseas employment, and it is not unusual for agencies to chargehigh fees, which leave little surplus for transferring back home. One suggestion to overcome this is for governments of migrant sending countries to lift restrictions
requiring emigrants to use employment agencies.
Description
A thesis presented to the School of Postgraduate Studies and Research Kampala International University Kampala, Uganda in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree Master of Project Planning and Management
Keywords
Remittance, Socio-economic, Development, Kisenyi, Kampala