- The World Bank just released its new findings for the year 2018
- India remains no.1 according to the agency as it is expected to receive a total of USD 75.9 billion
- There are currently 244 million migrants around the world based on Pew Research data
The latest edition of the Migration and Development Brief of the World Bank was released over the weekend, revealing the top 10 remittance receivers in the world.
The World Bank brief said that Vietnam is the tenth largest receiver with a forecasted USD 15.9 billion for 2018. India remains in first as it is expected to receive a whopping USD 75.9 billion for the year. This is not surprising, according to analysts, as India has many labour migrants in different parts of the world. China is at second place at USD 64.7 billion followed by the Philippines and Mexico at USD 33.7 billion. These remittance recipients get their remittances from labour migrants who regularly send money home. Egypt comes next at USD 25.7 billion while Nigeria is expected to receive a total of USD 25.1 billion for this year.
Nguyen Tri Hieu, a finance and banking expert from Vietnam, has said that the country's remittances are on an upward trend, a signal that the remittance services in the Southeast Asian nation will thrive more in the coming years. Nguyen also noted that the increase in remittances was due to the country’s stable economy. He said that Vietnamese migrants now see that it is better to invest their hard earned money at home. Most of these funds were invested in real estate, according to the Vietnamese central bank.
For the Philippines and Mexico, the biggest issue for migrants are the expensive overseas transfer rates, but labour migrants and professionals working abroad still send money home despite the costs. It’s not just migrants from the top ten remittance receivers that transfer money internationally though. According to Pew Research, millions of people have left their home countries in recent years. Some of them moved voluntarily to seek better economic opportunities. Others, on the other hand, were forced from their homeland due to war, persecution or political turmoil. Based on the research, the organisation found that there are a total of 244 million migrants around the world making up 3.3% of the global population.
News reports say that remittances for 2018 grew by 10.8%, reaching USD 528 billion. Remittances were projected to grow to US 689 billion. Migrants working and living in Central Asia and Europe sent a whopping 20% of the total global remittances.
Based on recent forecasts, 2019 is looking good as well despite commentators saying that the growth of remittances will be moderate. Remittances to developing nations are expected to grow by 4% and reach USD 549 billion. Global remittances, in general, are predicted to grow by 3.7%
“The future growth of remittances is vulnerable to lower oil prices, restrictive migration policies, and an overall moderation of economic growth”, said Michal Rutkowski, Senior Director of the Social Protection and Jobs Global Practice at the World Bank. The brief from the organisation also noted that sending money internationally is still high.
Mahmoud Mohieldin, the Senior Vice President for the 2030 Development Agenda, United Nations Relations, and Partnerships at the Bank said that even with these advancements, remittances fees are still too high. He noted that “opening up markets to competition and promoting the use of low-cost technologies will ease the burden on poorer customers”.
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