….Remittances to developing countries decline for second consecutive year
At a time when Nigeria is struggling to attract foreign exchange inflows to particularly to boost liquidity, reduce pressure on the naira and improve the economy, the country is also seeing low remittances from abroad due to weak growth in Europe which is also affecting flows to North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa countries.
World Bank figures indicate that remittance flows to Nigeria decelerated by 10 percent in 2016 from 2015 records as remittances to developing countries fell for a second consecutive year in 2016.
“This is a trend not seen in three decades,” according to the latest edition of the Migration and Development Brief, released during the ongoing World Bank’s Spring Meetings.
The World Bank estimates that officially recorded remittances to developing countries amounted to $429 billion in 2016, a decline of 2.4 percent over $440 billion in 2015. Global remittances, which include flows to high-income countries, contracted by 1.2 percent to $575 billion in 2016, from $582 billion in 2015.
“Low oil prices and weak economic growth in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and the Russian Federation are taking a toll on remittance flows to South Asia and Central Asia, while weak growth in Europe has reduced flows to North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa,” the World Bank noted in the brief.
The World Bank remittances flows to Sub-Saharan Africa declined by an estimated 6.1 percent to $33 billion in 2016, due to slow economic growth in remittance-sending countries; decline in commodity prices, especially oil, which impacted remittance receiving countries; and diversion of remittances to informal channels due to controlled exchange rate regimes in countries such as Nigeria.
Remittances to the region are projected to increase by 3.3 percent to $34 billion in 2017, however.
The decline in remittances, when valued in U.S. dollars, was worsened by a weaker euro, British pound and Russian ruble against the U.S. dollar.
As a result, many large remittance-receiving countries saw sharp declines in remittance flows. India, for instance, while retaining its top spot as the world’s largest remittance recipient, led the decline with remittance inflows amounting to $62.7 billion last year, a decrease of 8.9 percent over $68.9 billion in 2015.
“Remittances to other major receiving countries are also estimated to have fallen last year, including Bangladesh (-11.1 percent), Nigeria (-10 percent), and Egypt (-9.5 percent). The exceptions among major remittance recipients were Mexico and the Philippines, which saw inflows increase by an estimated 8.8 percent and 4.9 percent, respectively, last year,” according to the World Bank yearly report.
Rita Ramalho, Acting Director of the World Bank’s Global Indicators Group is concerned that a weakening of remittance flows can have a serious impact on the ability of families to get health care, education or proper nutrition since they are an important source of income for millions of families in developing countries.
But in keeping with an improved global economic outlook, remittances to developing countries are expected to recover this year, growing by an estimated 3.3 percent to $444 billion in 2017.
The global average cost of sending $200 remained flat at 7.45 percent in the first quarter of 2017, although this was significantly higher than the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target of 3 percent.
Sub-Saharan Africa, with an average cost of 9.8 percent, remains the highest-cost region.
A major barrier to reducing remittance costs, according to the World Bank is de-risking by international banks, when they close the bank accounts of money transfer operators, in order to cope with the high regulatory burden aimed at reducing money laundering and financial crime.
“This has posed a major challenge to the provision and cost of remittance services to certain regions.”
The Brief notes that several high-income countries that are host to many migrants are considering taxation of outward remittances, in part to raise revenue, and in part to discourage undocumented migrants. However, taxes on remittances are difficult to administer and likely to drive the flows underground.
The brief which also looked at the global migration crisis, indicates that between 2015 and 2016, the number of refugees in the 28 European Union countries increased by 273,000 to 1.6 million. During the same period, the number of refugees worldwide increased by 1.4 million, to 16.5 million.
In a special feature, the Brief notes the absence of a formal definition of the Global Compact on Migration, and advances a working definition of “an internationally negotiated framework for governments and international organizations to harness the benefits of migration while navigating its challenges.” It calls for regional and bilateral agreements that address migration, to develop a normative framework or guidelines for governments and international organizations.
“Migration will almost certainly increase in the future due to large income gaps, widespread youth unemployment, ageing populations in many developed countries, climate change, fragility and conflict,” said Dilip Ratha, lead author of the Brief and head of the Global Knowledge Partnership on Migration and Development (KNOMAD).
“Currently, the global migration architecture is fragmented and undefined. The global community needs to systematically map the current institutional framework, clarify the missions of key organizations, and develop normative guidelines by building on existing conventions that address migration.”
Onyinye Nwachukwu, Washington DC
