• Home
  • Politics
  • Health
  • World
  • Business
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • More
    • Sports
    • Entertainment
    • Lifestyle
What's Hot

Short and Funny Sayings for a Happy Summer with Friends

May 9, 2025

Trump Announces First Post-Tariff Trade Deal

May 8, 2025

100 Funny Father’s Day Quotes for Hilariously Relatable Humor (and Plenty of Love Too)

May 8, 2025
Facebook Twitter Instagram
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
Friday, May 9
Patriot Now NewsPatriot Now News
  • Home
  • Politics

    Security video shows brazen sexual assault of California woman by homeless man

    October 24, 2023

    Woman makes disturbing discovery after her boyfriend chases away home intruder who stabbed him

    October 24, 2023

    Poll finds Americans overwhelmingly support Israel’s war on Hamas, but younger Americans defend Hamas

    October 24, 2023

    Off-duty pilot charged with 83 counts of attempted murder after allegedly trying to shut off engines midflight on Alaska Airlines

    October 23, 2023

    Leaked audio of Shelia Jackson Lee abusively cursing staffer

    October 22, 2023
  • Health

    Disparities In Cataract Care Are A Sorry Sight

    October 16, 2023

    Vaccine Stocks—Including Pfizer, Moderna, BioNTech And Novavax—Slide Amid Plummeting Demand

    October 16, 2023

    Long-term steroid use should be a last resort

    October 16, 2023

    Rite Aid Files For Bankruptcy With More ‘Underperforming Stores’ To Close

    October 16, 2023

    Who’s Still Dying From Complications Related To Covid-19?

    October 16, 2023
  • World

    New York Democrat Dan Goldman Accuses ‘Conservatives in the South’ of Holding Rallies with ‘Swastikas’

    October 13, 2023

    IDF Ret. Major General Describes Rushing to Save Son, Granddaughter During Hamas Invasion

    October 13, 2023

    Black Lives Matter Group Deletes Tweet Showing Support for Hamas 

    October 13, 2023

    AOC Denounces NYC Rally Cheering Hamas Terrorism: ‘Unacceptable’

    October 13, 2023

    L.A. Prosecutors Call Out Soros-Backed Gascón for Silence on Israel

    October 13, 2023
  • Business

    Trump Announces First Post-Tariff Trade Deal

    May 8, 2025

    Electric Vehicle Sales Nosedive As GOP Takes Buzzsaw To Biden’s Mandate

    May 7, 2025

    Tyson Foods Announces It Will Bend The Knee To Trump Admin’s New Rules

    May 7, 2025

    Federal Reserve Holds Interest Rates Steady Despite Pressure From Trump

    May 7, 2025

    ‘Wait Them Out’: John Kennedy Tells Larry Kudlow One Lie He Suspects China’s Telling US

    May 7, 2025
  • Finance

    Ending China’s De Minimis Exception Brings 3 Benefits for Americans

    April 17, 2025

    The Trump Tariff Shock Should Push Indonesia to Reform Its Economy

    April 17, 2025

    Tariff Talks an Opportunity to Reinvigorate the Japan-US Alliance

    April 17, 2025

    How China’s Companies Are Responding to the US Trade War

    April 16, 2025

    The US Flip-flop Over H20 Chip Restrictions 

    April 16, 2025
  • Tech

    Cruz Confronts Zuckerberg on Pointless Warning for Child Porn Searches

    February 2, 2024

    FTX Abandons Plans to Relaunch Crypto Exchange, Commits to Full Repayment of Customers and Creditors

    February 2, 2024

    Elon Musk Proposes Tesla Reincorporates in Texas After Delaware Judge Voids Pay Package

    February 2, 2024

    Tesla’s Elon Musk Tops Disney’s Bob Iger as Most Overrated Chief Executive

    February 2, 2024

    Mark Zuckerberg’s Wealth Grew $84 Billion in 2023 as Pedophiles Target Children on Facebook, Instagram

    February 2, 2024
  • More
    • Sports
    • Entertainment
    • Lifestyle
Patriot Now NewsPatriot Now News
Home»Finance»Overseas Workers Could Boost Pacific Prosperity
Finance

Overseas Workers Could Boost Pacific Prosperity

August 15, 2024No Comments5 Mins Read
Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
Overseas Workers Could Boost Pacific Prosperity
Share
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

Pacific Islanders have always been travelers. Setting forth in ocean-going canoes, they first spread to new lands and new prosperity more than 5,000 years ago. Today, they are still going. 

In 2022-2023, approximately 47,807 Islanders traveled to New Zealand or Australia for work, under various labor mobility schemes such as the Pacific Labor Mobility (PALM) scheme and the Pacific Engagement Visa (PEV), reflecting a significant increase from previous years.

Pacific Island countries rely on the money wired home. Seven of the top 10 recipients of remittances, as measured by proportion of gross domestic product, are in the Pacific region. Far from being a problem, remittances play a major role in maintaining national debt in the Pacific at a sustainable level.

If Pacific Island countries were to negotiate with their key trade partners — Australia, New Zealand, and China — to facilitate the movement of the skilled workforce, they could expect skills, income, and increased government revenue.

Globally, we have witnessed a rapid growth of debt over the past three years, due to the need to shore up economies during the COVID-19 pandemic. The rate of global debt accumulation was faster than the early phases of the Great Depression and the Global Financial Crisis of 2007-08. In the post-COVID-19 era, global debt levels have remained elevated, posing significant challenges for economic recovery and fiscal sustainability. 

Nearly 60 percent of developing countries, which include Pacific Island countries, are now either in distress or at risk of distress. The Pacific Island countries’ average debt-to-gross domestic product ratio has increased from 32.9 percent in 2019 to 42.2 percent in 2021, and continues to rise post COVID-19. This substantial growth in debt in Pacific Island countries has exposed them to debt problems, which are expected to worsen in the coming years.

See also  The Case for a US Digital Trade Deal in IPEF – and Why It’s an Uphill Battle

Recent reports indicate that six Pacific Island countries are at high risk of debt distress. These countries are Kiribati, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, Samoa, Tonga, and Tuvalu. Other countries in the region, such as Vanuatu, are rated at medium risk of debt distress, while Palau and Nauru have more sustainable debt levels​.

Papua New Guinea’s gross financing needs (the sum of primary fiscal deficit and maturing debt obligations) between 2021 to 2023 are projected at 13.4 percent of gross domestic product, which is 6.4 points above the pre-pandemic level.

After the COVID-19 restrictions were lifted, Fiji’s debt-to-GDP ratio surged to more than 70 percent, making it one of the highest in the Pacific region, alongside Palau.

Historically, remittances from workers abroad have played a major role in keeping fiscal deficits in the Pacific at a sustainable level. Remittances enhance government revenue by increasing household consumption of local goods and services and their associated taxes. 

Remittances increase deposits in the financial system, which are channeled to support government debts via treasury bond purchases by banks. Moreover, remittances increase the demand for money (and for banking sector liabilities), thereby increasing the revenue the government generates by issuing currency. This is called seigniorage revenue.

In Samoa and Tonga, for example, remittances are the equivalent of one-sixth and two-fifths, respectively, of their gross domestic product. However, these countries experienced a decline in remittances during the pandemic. The World Bank estimated that remittances to the Pacific would decline by 4.3 percent for 2020 on account of COVID-19. Palau’s remittances were projected to decline the most, at 29 percent.

See also  Relying on AI Can Make Workers 19% More Likely to Make Mistakes

Conversely, some of the Pacific Island countries experienced record growth in remittances. In 2020, for instance, Tonga recorded the highest remittance inflows, equal to approximately 38 percent of its GDP. Similarly, Fiji’s inward personal remittances grew by 14.6 percent in 2021, reaching a new high of $842.2 million.

More recent data shows a resilient recovery. In 2023, remittances to low- and middle-income countries, including the Pacific, grew by 3.8 percent despite initial pandemic-related declines. Remittances to the Pacific and East Asia surged by estimated 3 percent reaching $133 billion in 2023.

Even though the debt road ahead is not a smooth one for the Pacific Island countries, the performance of remittances during and post COVID-19 suggests that policymakers can better tap them to bolster their countries’ debt position.

To assist in labor mobility, Pacific Island countries could be negotiating with wealthier trade partners for special visa arrangements and immigration schemes. These countries could lower visa requirements, encourage businesses to employ workers from the Pacific Island countries, promote equal workplace rights for these workers, and lengthen the maximum residency of these workers. 

This will increase the inflow of workers from the Pacific to their trade partners. The workers can then develop skills, earn income, support their families and communities, and in turn increase remittances and government revenue in the Pacific Island countries.

This article has been revised and updated for a special report on Migration. An earlier version with the headline “Mobile workers key to Pacific prosperity” appeared in July 2022.

Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

See also  Health insurers refuse to pay for 'miracle' weight loss jab
Boost overseas Pacific Prosperity Workers
Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email

Related Posts

China Erupts: Furious Workers Riot As Factories Collapse Under Trump’s Tariffs

May 1, 2025

4 Mind-Body Practices To Boost Resilience During Cancer Treatment

April 29, 2025

Ending China’s De Minimis Exception Brings 3 Benefits for Americans

April 17, 2025

The Trump Tariff Shock Should Push Indonesia to Reform Its Economy

April 17, 2025
Add A Comment

Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

Top Posts

League Defends Pro-Taylor Swift Bio Edit Despite Fan Backlash

October 6, 2023

Stocks slide after Fed announces 0.25% rate hike: Stock market news today

May 3, 2023

Goldman Sachs faces big writedown on GreenSky deal, CNBC reports

June 24, 2023

Biden Admin. Wants Rules to Push Electric Car Sales to 10X Current Levels

April 12, 2023
Don't Miss

Short and Funny Sayings for a Happy Summer with Friends

Lifestyle May 9, 2025

I love the beach. Just looking at the calming sea to relax. Having fun in…

Trump Announces First Post-Tariff Trade Deal

May 8, 2025

100 Funny Father’s Day Quotes for Hilariously Relatable Humor (and Plenty of Love Too)

May 8, 2025

Top 10 Benefits Of Acupuncture

May 8, 2025
About
About

This is your World, Tech, Health, Entertainment and Sports website. We provide the latest breaking news straight from the News industry.

We're social. Connect with us:

Facebook Twitter Instagram Pinterest
Categories
  • Business (4,110)
  • Entertainment (4,220)
  • Finance (3,202)
  • Health (1,938)
  • Lifestyle (1,627)
  • Politics (3,084)
  • Sports (4,036)
  • Tech (2,006)
  • Uncategorized (4)
  • World (3,944)
Our Picks

Bali Welcomes Chinese Flight After Long COVID-19 Hiatus

March 10, 2023

Companies Continue to Retract Remote Work Pledges, Call Workers Back to Office

April 7, 2023

‘Democrats Would Love That’: DeSantis Flips The Script On Fox News Moderators Determined To Discuss January 6

August 24, 2023
Popular Posts

Short and Funny Sayings for a Happy Summer with Friends

May 9, 2025

Trump Announces First Post-Tariff Trade Deal

May 8, 2025

100 Funny Father’s Day Quotes for Hilariously Relatable Humor (and Plenty of Love Too)

May 8, 2025
© 2025 Patriotnownews.com - All rights reserved.
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.