Migration and remittances: the rise and fall of Albania and Kosovo

The result of the global financial crisis and the Eurozone crisis has been low levels of economic development in the western Balkans. This article makes a comparative analysis of migration and migrant remittance inflows related to Albania and Kosovo in the last decade. Among the western Balkan countries, they share a common economic, historical, political and social background. In particular, they have very high levels of migration and receive a very significant amount of migrant remittances. Migrants from these two western Balkan countries live in Europe and overseas, and their remittances have had a significant impact on the economic and financial wellbeing of their households. In particular, we analyse the case of Albania and its future perspectives in view of its high unemployment rate and the recent mass return of unemployed migrants, which is one of the main consequences of the European debt crisis. We conclude by highlighting the economic policies which Albania must adopt in the light of the high unemployment resulting from the mass return of migrants.