pa761c.jpg Paul Lachine

Harnessing the Remittance Boom

In Asia’s developing countries, the importance of remittances – the money that migrant workers send home to their families (many of whom live in poor and remote areas) – is immense. But, while remittances to these countries are five times higher than official aid, their potential economic-development benefits have not been realized.

ROME – For more than a decade, Asia’s economies have been on the move – and so have its people. The scale of migration from rural to urban areas and across international borders is historically unprecedented, and twenty-first-century Asia is its focal point.

In Asia’s developing countries, the power and potential of remittances – the money that migrant workers send home to their families (many of whom live in poor and remote areas) – is immense. Currently, over 60 million migrant workers from the Asia/Pacific region account for more than half of all remittance flows to developing countries, sending home about $260 billion in 2012.

China, India, and the Philippines are the three largest recipients of remittances, while Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Vietnam are also in the top ten. The money is often a lifeline: it is estimated that 10% of Asian families depend on payments from abroad to obtain their food, clothing, and shelter.

https://prosyn.org/DfFgtzg