On International Women’s Day, Western Union
Recognizes Migrant Women Moving, Sending and Receiving
For this year’s International Women’s Day on March 8, The
Western Union Company (NYSE: WU), a leader in global money transfer
services, recognizes the economic impact that international migrant
women are having on both the global economy and their home
economies as they cross borders for new opportunities.
As a company serving women, who represent nearly 51 percent of
its customers sending cross-border money transfers, Western Union
celebrates the economic power of women, who comprise almost 50
percent of international migrants and remit 50 percent of the World
Bank’s estimated USD582 billion in global remittances.
Based on analysis of global trends, Western Union said women
send a greater percentage of their wages, while sending the same
amounts as men. Both men and women primarily send to women (about
two-thirds of receivers are women1), reinforcing the importance of
women as the core of home financial management.
“Women have emerged from the margins of the international
migration equation to become decision makers and essential
contributors to the financial well-being of their families and
communities,” said Hikmet Ersek, President and CEO, Western
Union.
“As women significantly influence the use of remittances for
education, women’s international remittances contribute to human
capital-building globally while also reinforcing the backbone of so
many remittance-receiving economies. We see it every day across the
world, more than half of the remittances we move are made by
women,” Ersek said.
Women are Migrating as Much as Men
Today migrant women represent 48 percent of all international
migrants and are finding jobs in multiple sectors and disciplines
or starting their own businesses, according to the United Nations2,
dismissing some misconceptions that women were “second wave”
migrants, traveling only as part of a family or once relatives have
established themselves in a new home. Whereas men have historically
migrated to industrialized economies for both manual labor and
technical or professional jobs, today women workers are migrating
to countries with strong service-based economies where they will
have greater opportunity. The proportion of women to men migrants
significantly varies by country and can be as high as 70 - 80
percent in some cases3.
Women Senders Remit More Out of Their Wages and Women Receive
the Bulk of Remittances
Female international migrants send approximately the same total
amount of remittances as their male counterparts, sending a higher
proportion of their income, even though they generally earn less
than men, according to International Organization of Migration
(IOM)4. The IOM states that women usually send money more regularly
and for longer periods of time.
Women international migrants are also more likely than men to
act as a safety net for families back home during emergencies and
bad economic times. Additionally, when women send international
remittances, these women gain more autonomy and negotiating power
within the overall family1.
According to the United Nations1, international migrant men and
women prefer to send remittances to women (two-thirds), reinforcing
the global finding that women are the household financial managers.
Studies show international women senders and receivers channel
remittances in ways that directly benefit the family, including
food, education, healthcare, housing and savings, while men
remittance receivers tend to spend slightly more on the consumption
of goods, according to Western Union analysis.
Greater Access to Financial Services Critical to Empowering
Women
Ersek reiterated Western Union’s support for migrant women on
International Women’s Day, noting their courage and dedication.
“Greater access to financial services is critical to advancing the
financial inclusion and literacy of women within the global
economy, particularly with the use of new technologies – such as
mobile,” he said. “The public and private sectors around the world
have a collective role to drive for real inclusion, and Western
Union is distinctively positioned to provide access for banked,
under-banked and un-banked international remittance senders and
receivers, as well as to facilitate rapid payments for cross border
trade for small and medium enterprises.”
“We have a responsibility to tailor services for a growing and
influential group of international workers,” said Ersek. “Western
Union offers nearly half a million Agent locations, and we are
improving choices, with the goal of allowing people to send money
any time, any way and (almost) anywhere on earth, through an array
of pay-in options such as cash, bank account, debit, credit,
prepaid, online, mobile wallet and now Apple Pay in the U.S.”
Migrant Women Gain in Financial Transaction
Sophistication
“Women have increased their participation with banks around the
world as places to send and receive money,” Ersek added, “although
we find the majority of Western Union money transfer customers
still prefer cash due to convenience and accessibility.” According
to the World Bank, 46.6 percent of women globally have an account
at a formal financial institution (vs. 54.5 percent of men).
However, in developing economies, women are 8 percent less likely
to have an account than men. Further, women have narrowed the
gender gap in their financial practices as 13.4 percent of women
use electronic payment methods to make payments (vs. 15.6 percent
of men) and 21 percent of women saved money at a financial
institution (vs. 23.9 percent of men).
The World Bank5 also found that women are rapidly approaching
parity with men when it comes to sending and receiving money.
Nearly seven percent of women use their bank accounts to receive
remittances (vs. 7.6% of men) and six percent of women use their
account to send remittances (vs. 8.0% of men). Mobile phones are
gaining popularity with nearly three percent of women to receive
money (vs. 3.5% of men), and nearly two percent of women use their
mobile phone to send money (vs. 2.7% of men).6
About International Woman’s Day
Each year International Women's Day (IWD) is celebrated on March
8. The first International Women's Day was held in 1911. Thousands
of events occur to mark the economic, political and social
achievements of women. Organizations, governments, charities,
educational institutions, women's groups, corporations and the
media around the world celebrate the achievements of women while
calling for greater equality. Make It Happen is the
2015 theme for the internationalwomensday.com global hub,
encouraging effective action for advancing and recognizing
women.
About Western Union
The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU) is a leader in global
payment services. Together with its Vigo, Orlandi Valuta, Pago
Facil and Western Union Business Solutions branded payment
services, Western Union provides consumers and businesses with
fast, reliable and convenient ways to send and receive money around
the world, to send payments and to purchase money orders. As of
December 31, 2014, the Western Union, Vigo and Orlandi Valuta
branded services were offered through a combined network of over
500,000 agent locations in 200 countries and territories and over
100,000 ATMs and kiosks. In 2014, The Western Union Company
completed 255 million consumer-to-consumer transactions worldwide,
moving $85 billion of principal between consumers, and 484 million
business payments. For more information, visit
www.westernunion.com.
____________________________________
1 International Organization of Migration
(IOM) and United Nations International Research and Training
Institute for the Advancement (UN-INSTRAW) 2007; IOM et al.,
20072 UN-INSTRAW3 Linking Women Remitters & Senders to
Financial Services, Women’s World Banking, 20114 IOM Report 20135
World Bank Report 20116 Financial inclusion by gender. (2011) World
Bank
WU-G
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Western UnionAmericas and European Union:Pia De Lima, +1
954-260-5732pia.delima@westernunion.comorMiddle East, Africa,
Asia-Pacific, Eastern Europe & CIS:Ingrid Sahu, 971 4
4373656Ingrid.sahu@westernunion.com
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