Flipping the page: exploring the connection between Ghanaian migrants' remittances and their living conditions in the UK

Migrants' remittance to close relatives and acquaintances back home has been widely studied. However, little is known about the impact remittances have on the living conditions of migrants who send these remittances. This paper hypothesises that migrants often deprive themselves of better living conditions in their host countries in order to regularly remit home. We test this hypothesis using survey data from 129 Ghanaian migrants living in the United Kingdom. We develop a Living Condition Index based on migrant participants' self-assessment of how remittance has impacted their living conditions in the UK and specify a hierarchical multiple regression model to test this hypothesis. Controlling for migrants' demographic, migration, employment, and remittance information, we find that there is a 19.8% decrease in migrants' living conditions when they remit more than 150 pound per month, thereby confirming our hypothesis that remittances adversely impact migrants' living conditions in their host countries. The paper reflects on the implications of the findings in light of migrants' living conditions under the current global health pandemic and offers practical suggestions that could help lessen this financial burden on migrants while supporting sustainable businesses back home.