World Bank reveals amount sent home by Nigerians living abroad

The World Bank on Monday revealed that Nigerians living in the Diaspora retreated home $ 22 billion in 2017, making it one of the highest and the fifth largest transfer by immigrants.

Egypt received 20 billion dollars from its citizens abroad, according to figures published today by the bank. The World Bank said the payments of immigrants were returning to their home countries to reach a new record in 2017, but the cost of transferring funds also increased. The stronger than expected recovery of money remittances - payments that are crucial for supporting the economy of many poor countries - was driven by growth in Europe, Russia and the United States, according to the World Bank in a report. Nigeria's news agency reports that the bank estimates that officially registered remittances to low and middle-income countries reached $ 466 billion in 2017, an increase of 8.5 percent from $ 429 billion in 2016. It is expected that this year with around four percent will rise. The inflow of credit transfers has improved in all regions. The best money recipients were India with $ 69 billion, followed by China ($ 64 billion), the Philippines ($ 33 ​​billion), Mexico ($ 31 billion), Nigeria and Egypt. The global average cost of sending $ 200 was 7.1 percent in the first quarter of 2018, and sub-Saharan Africa is still the most expensive place to send money, where average costs are 9.4 percent. "While money transfers are growing, countries, institutions and development agencies must continue to cut high transfer costs so that families get more money," says lead author of the report, Dilip Ratha. The bank calls on countries to take steps to simplify the process to reduce costs, including 'introducing more efficient technology'. By region, Europe and Central Asia saw the largest growth of 21 percent in the past year, while Sub-Saharan Africa rose 11 percent. East Asia and the Pacific saw the largest inflow of $ 130 billion, while South Asia received $ 117 billion, followed by Latin America with $ 80 billion.