Report Examines the Impact of Remittances from Portugal and South Africa
A new report, part of IOM's Migration Research Series, examines the
social and economic impact of remittances sent by Angolans living
in Portugal and South Africa and suggest ways to maximize their
development effect in Angola.
The report states that long-standing relationships established
since the colonial period between Angola and Portugal, migration
dynamics within the South African Development Community (SADC) and
the consequences of the prolonged armed conflict in Angola provide
the context for Angolan migration flows to Portugal and South
Africa, with most Angolans leaving their country of birth in the
1990s.
According to the report, 69.5 per cent of the respondents in
Portugal and 91 per cent of those in South Africa are male, with a
majority of migrants in Portugal claiming to come from middle class
and lower middle class, while most migrants in South Africa saying
to come either from a poor socio-economic environment or from the
lower middle class.
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target="" title="">MRS N°39 - Angola: A Study of the Impact of
Remittances from Portugal and South Africa
Furthermore, 76.5 per cent of migrants interviewed in Portugal
and 89.5 per cent of migrants in South Africa are employed or
self-employed.
With low levels of qualification (68.8 per cent of respondents
in Portugal and 46.4 per cent in South Africa having only completed
basic education), a large proportion of Angolans have taken up
low-paid jobs, at the bottom of the occupational hierarchies of the
Portuguese and South African labour markets.
This does not, however, prevent them from supporting their
families in Angola through remittances, which constitute an
important source of supplementary income for a large share of
surveyed households.
The report finds that more than 90 per cent of the total number
of households in Angola had received remittances within the past 12
months. In 38 per cent of cases, remittances constitute 21 per cent
to 80 per cent of the monthly household income.
For 16 per cent of the households, remittances constitute 100
per cent of monthly income.
As regards remittances' utilization, 67 per cent of respondents
say they are used to meet basic household necessities, buy
consumables and pay for utilities. A further 14 per cent say they
use a portion of remittances for business purposes; and only 1 per
cent of the respondents claim to invest part of the remittance
funds in agricultural activities.
Angolan migrants in Portugal and South Africa use essentially
two types of transfer channels: recorded services (remittance and
courier companies) and hand delivery.
Recorded systems used by migrants in Portugal and South Africa
charge on average about 10 per cent of the amount transferred,
while hand-carried remittances are usually cost-free.
Although 58 per cent of respondents in Angola claimed they
receive remittances through banks, it is unlikely that these
remittances come from Portugal or South Africa, as interviewees in
both countries rarely use bank products to remit.
When examining intentions of return, a majority of Angolans in
Portugal and South Africa say they are willing to return to Angola
and intend to invest in small businesses in a wide range of sectors
in their country of birth.
Some of these projects, however, are difficult to realize due to
lack of capital, access to credit, and necessary skills, or due to
the difficulties linked to the migratory status.
Additionally, the majority of Angolan migrants in Portugal (80
per cent of interviewees) and South Africa (62.3 per cent of
interviewees) do not belong to any kind of organization or group
owing to their lack of interest, lack of time and information,
distrust vis-à-vis government-led initiatives, as well as
fear and reluctance to be involved in anything that seems
political.
The study concludes with three major recommendations in order to
establish links with Angolans living abroad, and enhance
remittances' developmental impacts in Angola.
Those include measures to engage Angolans in the diapora through
non-biased and non-political intermediaries so as to build trust.
Similarly, the report states that more should be done to facilitate
investment in Angola, lower remittance costs and expand
cross-border and domestic remittance services.
This IOM funded report was carried out in cooperation with the
Angolan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through the Institute
Providing Support to Angolan Communities Abroad and with the
support the NGO Development
Workshop.
MRS N°39 - Angola: A Study of the Impact of Remittances from
Portugal and South Africa is available at IOM's online
bookstore.
For further information, please contact:
Paola Alvarez
IOM Geneva
Tel: +41 22 717 95 22
E-mail:
"mailto:palvarez@iom.int">palvarez@iom.int