The ambiguous role of remittances in West African countries facing climate variability

Cécile Couharde (1) , Rémi Generoso (2)

1 EconomiX - EconomiX
2 Cemotev - Centre d'études sur la mondialisation, les conflits, les territoires et les vulnérabilités

We investigate the consequences of remittances inflows on the macroeconomic performance of West African countries over the 1985–2007 period. We take into account the exposure of those countries to climate variability by estimating a PCHVAR model which allows heterogeneity between countries’ responses to rainfall shocks. Our results show that the impact of remittances on macroeconomic performance is highly sensitive to those shocks. In particular, when drought conditions prevail, remittances no longer exert any short-term spillover effects on growth and may increase a situation of economic dependence, by spurring agricultural imports.

Domaines: Economies et finances

Cécile Couharde, Rémi Generoso. The ambiguous role of remittances in West African countries facing climate variability. Environment and Development Economics, 2014, Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation in Developing and Transition Countries, 20 (Special Issue 4), ⟨10.1017/S1355770X14000497⟩. ⟨hal-01385947⟩