From money transfers to meal tables: Unravelling the nexus of remittances, food security, and economic growth in Turkey

The link between remittances, food security, and economic growth is a complex and important element of the economic development of the society. The study aims to explore the causality relationships between Remittances, Food Security and Economic Growth in the Turkish economy. The period of study from 1974 to 2018 and annual data of Remittances, Calories intake (as a proxy for the food security) and Economic Growth are used in the framework of time series. Techniques such as Zivot-Andrews (ZA) unit root, Toda-Yamamoto (TY), Breitung- Candelon (BCG), and Hatemi-J tests are used to detect the causality assessing the direction of it. The main findings consist of: (i) the presence of cointegration of rank two among series, the lack of linear TY time domain causality; (ii) the presence of BCG spectral causality from Calories intake to Growth only in medium period at 10% significance and, (iii) the presence of asymmetric causality from Remittances to Growth in positive changes, from Growth to Calories intake in negative changes and from Calories intake to Remittances in positive changes respectively at 1,5, and 1% significance. These results provide policymakers with valuable insights into the complexity nature of the relationship among remittances, food security, and economic growth, guiding them in designing effective strategies for poverty alleviation, sustainable development, and inclusive growth.