Context on the importance of remittances

Remittances are an important source of external finance for many developing / emerging countries. Here is a selection of fresh background data and examples of the significance of remittances.

According to the World Bank, remittances to developing countries are projected to grow by 3.3% in 2017 to $444 billion.

More detail here from this paper published by the World Bank

One of the continuing issues is the cost of making money transfers from one country to another. The global average cost of sending $200 was 7.5% in the first quarter of 2017, 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. 

Some examples of the significance of remittances by country including Pakistan and Somalia