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Encyclopedia > Remittances
Remittance advertising in Oxford Street, London with Russian slogans.
Remittance advertising in Oxford Street, London with Russian slogans.

Remittances are transfers of money by foreign workers to their home countries. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 531 pixel Image in higher resolution (1760 × 1168 pixel, file size: 620 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Remittances Metadata This... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 531 pixel Image in higher resolution (1760 × 1168 pixel, file size: 620 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Remittances Metadata This...


Money sent home by migrants constitutes the second largest financial inflow to many developing countries, exceeding international aid. Latest World Bank estimates are that some US$250 billion was remitted globally in 2006 and these figures are increasing by almost 30% year on year. Remittances contribute to economic growth and to the livelihoods of needy people worldwide. Moreover, remittance transfers can also promote access to financial services for the sender and recipient, thereby increasing financial and social inclusion.


(Remittance can also refer to the accounting concept of a monetary payment transferred by a customer to a business.) It has been suggested that Accounting scholarship be merged into this article or section. ...


Remittances are playing an increasingly large role in the economies of many countries, contributing to economic growth and to the livelihoods of needy people (though generally not the poorest of the poor). As remittance receivers often have a higher propensity to own a bank account, remittances promote access to financial services for the sender and recipient, an essential aspect of leveraging remittances to promote economic development.


The World Bank has a web page for remittances [1], and the World Bank and the Bank for International Settlements [2] have developed international standards for remittance services [3]. ...


Early research on the effect of remittances in particular countries include Richard P.C. Brown's "Public Debt and Private Wealth. Debt, capital flight and the IMF in Sudan" (1992) Basingstoke: Macmillan.


In 2004 the G8 met at the Sea Island Summit and decided to take action to lower the costs for migrant workers who send money back to their friends and families in their country of origin. In light of this, various G8 government developmental organizations, such as the UK government's Department For International Development (DFID) [4] and USAID [5] began to look into ways in which the cost of remitting money could be lowered. One of DFID's responses was to develop a programme called 'Sending Money Home?'[6]. Sending Money Home[1] is a free information service funded by the UK Government’s Department For International Development[2]. The programme’s aim is to provide free, impartial, transparent information for migrant workers and those with origins in the developing world who wish to send money home to family...


Recent studies by the Humanitarian Policy Group (HPG) [7] have shown that remittances not only play an important part in many people's daily lives but are particularly important for people during crises [8]

Contents

Latin American and the Caribbean

In Latin America and the Caribbean, remittances play an important role in the economy of the region, totaling over 60 billion USD in 2006, with about 75% originating in the United States. This total represents more than the sum of Foreign direct investment and official development aid combined. In six Latin American and Caribbean countries, remittances even account for more than 10% of GDP and exceed the dollar flows of the largest export product in almost every country in the region. The Inter American Development Bank's Multilateral Investment Fund has been the leading agency on regional remittance research. All IDB[9] remittances info can be found at the MIF's remittance portal[10]. This research has often been carried out in collaboration with Manuel Orozco of the Inter-American Dialogue, his remittance research can be found at the Dialogue[11] and at the IDB[12]. In this region, Mexico, one of the best documented examples of migration and remittances, received remittance inflows of 26 Billion US$ in 2006, 95% of which originated in the US. Latin America consists of the countries of South America and some of North America (including Central America and some the islands of the Caribbean) whose inhabitants mostly speak Romance languages, although Native American languages are also spoken. ... “West Indian” redirects here. ... Foreign direct investment (FDI) is defined as a long-term investment by a foreign direct investor in an enterprise resident in an economy other than that in which the foreign direct investor is based. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Aid. ...


Asia

A majority of the remittances from the US have been directed to Asian countries like India (approx. 26 billion USD), Philippines (approx. 14 billion USD) and China (approx. 23 billion USD). Most of the remittances happen by the conventional channel of agents (Western Union, Moneygram). However, with the increasing relevance and reach of the Internet, online money transfer has gained momentum over the years. Some of the popular online global remittance providers include Remit2India [13], Remit2Home[14], Western Union [15], eMoneygram[16] and Xoom[17].


Emergencies

During disasters or emergencies, remittances can be a vital source of income for people whose other forms of livelihood may have been destroyed by conflict of natural disaster. This is being increasingly recognised as important by aid actors who are considering better ways of supporting people in emergency responses [18].


History

Remittances are not a new phenomena in the world, being a normal concomitant to migration which has ever been a part of human history.


In the 1800s, the English usage of the word was usually to refer to money sent away from England - the opposite direction to today's usual usage of the term. A "remittance man" was an exile living on money sent from home. Within Victorian British culture, this often meant the black sheep of the family who was sent away (from the UK to the Empire), and paid to stay away Queen Victoria (shown here on the morning of her accession to the Throne, 20 June 1837) gave her name to the historic era The Victorian era of the United Kingdom marked the height of the British Industrial Revolution and the apex of the British Empire. ... Black Sheep may refer to many different things: // English language Black sheep is a derogatory colloquial term in the English language meaning an outsider or one who is different in a way which others disapprove of. ... The British Empire in 1897, marked in pink, the traditional colour for Imperial British dominions on maps. ...


Several European countries such as Spain, Italy or Ireland have been heavily dependent on remittances received from their emigrants during the 19th and 20th centuries. In the case of Spain, remittances amounted to the 21% of all of its current account income in 1946. All of those countries created polices on remittances developed after significant research efforts in the field. For instance, Italy was the first country in the world to enact a law to protect remittances in 1901 while Spain was the first country to sign an international treaty (with Argentina in 1960) to lower the cost of the remittances received. One source for these historical facts is the Spanish think tank Remesas [19].


Terrorism

The recent internationally coordinated effort to stifle the funding of terrorist organisations has had a negative impact on the sending of remittances. As money is often sent through informal channels (family connections, travelling friends, local money lenders etc.) it becomes difficult to track and is consequently a favoured method of financing terrorist activities. Since 9/11 many governments have taken steps to address these informal money transfer businesses. In the US through the USA PATRIOT Act, Title III and in the EU through a series of EU Money Laundering Directives. Though no serious terror risk should be associated with migrants sending money to their families, misuse of remittance channels remains a serious government concern. The effects of enforcement action have sometimes had counterproductive effects as in the case of Al-Barakaat, a Hawala network responsible for the largest remittance flows to Somalia. The date that commonly refers to the attacks on United States citizens on September 11, 2001 (see the September 11, 2001 Attacks). ... The USA PATRIOT Act was passed by the United States Congress in 2001 as a response to the September 11, 2001 attacks. ... the never represent ISLAM ... Hawala (also known as hundi) is an informal value transfer system based on performance and honor of a huge network of money brokers which are primarily located in the Middle East, Africa and Asia. ...


Examples

Examples of remittances include:

The Pacific Ocean has an estimated 20,000 to 30,000 islands; the exact number is unknown. ... Official language(s) English, Hawaiian Capital Honolulu Largest city Honolulu Area  Ranked 43rd  - Total 10,931 sq mi (29,311 km²)  - Width n/a miles (n/a km)  - Length 1,522 miles (2,450 km)  - % water 41. ... Latin America consists of the countries of South America and some of North America (including Central America and some the islands of the Caribbean) whose inhabitants mostly speak Romance languages, although Native American languages are also spoken. ... A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ... World map showing the location of Europe. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... Guangdong, often spelt as Kwangtung, is a province on the south coast of the Peoples Republic of China. ...   (Chinese: ; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Fu-chien; Postal map spelling: Fukien, Foukien; local transliteration Hokkien from Min Nan Hok-kiàn) is one of the provinces on the southeast coast of the Peoples Republic of China. ... Flag Seal Nickname: City of Angels Location Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates , Government State County California Los Angeles County Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D) Geographical characteristics Area     City 1,290. ... Look up Phoenix in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... “NY” redirects here. ... The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a country in western Europe, and a member of the European Union. ...

External links

  • MAPESA  : Blog specialised on money transfer, remittances and cards issues www.mapesa.org
  • Briefing Paper: Remittances This brief explains what a remittance transfer is and assesses the impact that remittances may have on developing economies.
  • Financial Market Integiry unit, the World Bank Bilateral Remittance Corridor Analysis (BRCA)
  • Sending Money Home? The UK Government's Department For International Development's website provides free, impartial, and transparent information on the services, costs etc of sending money to the developing world. It also has links to relevant sites and papers on the subject of migrant remittances.

  Results from FactBites:
 
ZirMed - Remittance (767 words)
Call 877-494-7633 to speak to a service representative, or complete this form and a representative will contact you.
ZirMed is able to receive these electronic remittance files from hundreds of payers nationwide and we would love to assist you in streamlining your daily posting routine.
ZirMed is able to receive electronic remittance files from hundreds of payers nationwide and we would love to assist you in streamlining your daily posting routine.
Remittance Services to India, FAQs: Remittance Services,Wire Transfer,remittance to india,INR,Funds Transfer ... (2893 words)
In such cases, the remittance is sent as a wire transfer to our link branch in Chennai, which issues a rupee draft and sends it to the beneficiary by courier (where available) or by registered post.
All such remittances, unless these are for credit to dollar accounts with SBI's Indian branches, will be converted to Indian rupees by the Indian branch to or through which the remittance is sent.
The remittance is sent by wire transfer (SWIFT) to our correspondent branch/bank in the beneficiary country, which forwards the remittance electronically or by draft sent to the beneficiary bank by courier (where available) or by post.
  More results at FactBites »


 

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