As the number of migrants declined globally in 2021, remittances to their countries of origin are expected to experience a dramatic rise of 7.3% this year, to $ 589 billion (€ 520 billion). Migrants from poor countries send three times more money than all official development assistance spent by rich countries around the world. The World Bank, which publishes these figures Wednesday, November 16, underlines their “Importance” as a bulwark against the economic crisis which is currently hitting low and middle income countries.
The Washington-based institution even calls on governments to “Facilitate these transfers” to support the global recovery and because they are “A vital lifeline for household spending on food, health and education during times of economic hardship.” The increase is attributed to two main causes: first, the vigorous economic recovery in host countries, the United States and Europe, helped by major support plans; and the needs of families in poor countries, which have been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Money flows are increasing by 21.6% in Latin America and the Caribbean, particularly in countries that have received migrants in transit to the United States in recent months, notably in Mexico, which suggests that a part of the money was used to pay smugglers. The other hypothesis is the massive arrival of American teleworkers in these countries during the confinement, which would have resulted in significant transfers of currency.
“Hindered process”
Rises are more specific to certain regions, such as those from the Gulf countries and Russia, whose economies are benefiting from the rise in oil prices, or to countries in crisis such as Lebanon or Yemen. In the rest of the world, the increase is between 5% and 10%, except in East Asia (excluding China) where it should only increase by 1.4%.
Transfers should continue to increase in 2022, but at a slower pace due to the end of fiscal stimulus plans
Migrants go to work abroad despite exorbitant costs. The average Bangladeshi person pays the equivalent of twenty months of his salary to agents in Saudi Arabia to find work. It is also more difficult for them to find a job. The World Bank notes that “The drop in the number of foreign workers in the Gulf countries” is a “Worrying underlying trend from the point of view [des] low and middle income countries ”.
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