The necessity of social infrastructure for enhancing educational attainment: evidence from high remittance recipient LMICs

This study investigated the effect of remittance inflows on educational attainment with the interaction effect of social infrastructure. The system generalized method of moments (Sys-GMM) technique was applied to analyze data from 69 countries from 1995 to 2019 using a 5-year non-overlapping average. The findings revealed that: (1) remittances and income have a negative effect on educational attainment in low- and middle-income countries; (2) social infrastructure, government expenditures on education, and institutional quality have a positive effect on educational attainment; (3) remittances alone cannot generate educational attainment; however, when remittances work in tandem with better social infrastructure, it facilitates educational attainment; (4) remittances and social infrastructure have asymmetric effects on educational attainment; and (5) remittances contribute more to females than males in obtaining an education. Thus, the findings suggest that policymakers should formulate alternative social infrastructure development strategies to render higher returns from remittances.