Migrant remittances reach record levels

This money is that earned by an immigrant employee in a host country which offers him work. Money that this worker sends back, in part, to his country of origin, generally to his family. 670 billion dollars (610 billion euros) is the total amount of transfers recorded this year. An increase of close to 4% compared to 2021/2022. As for next year, the World Bank forecasts an identical increase.

It has become a real economic phenomenon and we cannot speak of monetary “leaks” from one region to another, contrary to what some detractors would have us believe. These billions transferred contribute, in their own way, to the development of disaster areas.

United States, Saudi Arabia and China, leading trio of monetary “displacement”

These transfers of funds made by migrants to their nation of origin remain one of the main sources of external financing for poor countries. The World Bank notes that the sums thus displaced far exceed the amounts of official development assistance. They are even more important than foreign direct investments made by international companies in poor countries (250 billion dollars more than direct investments).

Contrary to popular belief, while we are in the midst of a debate on the migration phenomenon, Europe is not the champion of monetary “displacement”. The United States comes first, due to its significant immigration culture. Saudi Arabia comes close behind due to the large and growing number of foreign workers who come to reside there to strengthen the local workforce. They are mainly Pakistanis, Indians and Asians. Europe is fourth, behind China. As for the war in Ukraine, it shook up the rankings by relegating Russia lower. There are, for example, fewer flows from Russia to Azerbaijan or Georgia. We see that these money transfers today make migrant workers increasingly important players in global geopolitics.