Except for emergencies and for technical assistance for raising skills and institution building, foreign aid to Pacific island countries (PICs) for budgetary support has been phased out since the late 1990s. Because of the small sized domestic markets, foreign direct investment (FDI) is small and is confined to development of tourism infrastructure. On the other hand, inward remittances received from the rising number of islanders migrating overseas for work are increasing, far exceeding aid and FDI. However, influence of remittances on economic growth depends on financial sector development (FSD) for mobilizing the savings from the remittance receipts for domestic investment. This paper assesses the role of FSD in the nexus between remittances and economic growth through a panel study of five major PICs, namely Fiji, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu.  The study findings show that the ongoing efforts for strengthening FSD have to be stepped up by focusing on financial inclusion through spread of branchless banking and promotion of  information and communication technology.

This paper investigates whether there exists a long term relationship between foreign direct investment (FDI) and economic growth in India with special reference to the role of financial sector development (FSD), which is now considered as a critical contingent factor as borne out by recent empirical studies elsewhere. A 35 -year period (1979-2013), which is covered by this paper, witnessed gradual introduction of economic reforms picking up speed from early 1990s. The doors were opened to FDI. Undertaking an empirical study on FDI’s contribution to growth of Indian economy by taking into account the role of financial sector development (FSD) as a contingent factor, this paper concludes that FDI and FSD have contributed to growth. It is also confirmed that the interaction term between FDI and financial development indicates a complementary relationship between the two. Keywords: India; FDI; FSD; Growth; Threshold Level; Interaction Effect.

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