THE ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES OF LABOUR EXPORTATION IN THE MIDDLE EAST, 1975-85

Date

1991

Author

LOONEY, Robert E.

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The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of out-migration on the economies of the major non-oil Middle Eastern countries during the post-1973 period. The main findings of the study are that in the initial post-1973 period, the regional oil boom was undoubtedly beneficial to most of the labour exporters in the Arab world. Emigration directly absorbed unemployed manpower and indirectly generated increased domestic demand for labour, as emigrant remittances were reflected in rising output in key sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, and construction services. In view of the fact that there were unemployed labour resources in most of these countries at the outset, the opportunity cost of emigration in terms of output foregone was zero. In these circumstances, remittances almost automatically had a beneficial impact on the economies of these countries. On the other hand, it is apparent that by the late 1970s and early 1980s, domestic labour markets in the region had changed to the extent that for most countries shortages of labour were creating production problems, particularly, but not exclusively, for agriculture.

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https://hdl.handle.net/11511/110841

Collections

Department of Economics, Article