2023-06-19 08:25:06
Lebanon ranked third among countries in the region, preceded only by Egypt and Morocco, in terms of the volume of expatriate remittances, as remittances in 2022 amounted to about $6.4 billion. Lebanon also ranked first in the region and third in the world in terms of the contribution of expatriate remittances to the gross domestic product, according to World Bank estimates.
High global conversions
In a report on remittances of expatriates under the title “Migration and Development Brief No. 38: Remittances are still strong but slowing down,” the World Bank expected that remittances of expatriates around the world would increase by 1.1 percent in 2023 to $840 billion from $831 billion in 2022. compared to a growth rate of 5.1 percent in 2021 to $791 billion. The report indicated that remittances from expatriates to low- and middle-income countries increased by 8 percent in 2022, to reach $647 billion from $599 billion in 2021.
The report commented, considering that the growth of expatriate remittances to low- and middle-income countries occurred despite slower growth and high levels of inflation in some OECD countries, which contributed to a decline in the real income of some immigrants. In addition, the report explained that the main reasons for the growth in expatriate remittances to the region during the year 2022 are due to the oil boom in member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC Countries), which contributed to the high income of immigrants, and heavy remittances from Russia to countries in Central Asia, and a strong labor market in the United States and in countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.
source of funding for countries
He added that remittances are an essential part of external financing in low- and middle-income countries, compared to foreign direct investment, official development assistance and portfolio investments.
According to the World Bank, excluding China, remittances have been the largest source of external financing for low- and middle-income countries since 2016. They amounted to nearly three times the amount of official development assistance for more than a decade.
In this context, the report stated that all regions within low- and middle-income countries witnessed an increase in expatriate remittances during the year 2022, and it is expected that all regions will also witness an increase in the year 2023.
In this context, the World Bank expected that remittances in low- and middle-income countries would increase by 1.4 percent in 2023, to reach $656 billion. The report predicted that the Europe and Central Asia region would witness a 1.3 percent improvement in remittances from expatriates in 2023 to $80 billion, in light of the continued weakness in remittances to Ukraine and Russia, in addition to the noticeable deterioration in the exchange rate of the US dollar against the Russian ruble.
Expatriate remittances to sub-Saharan Africa are expected to increase by 1.9 percent in 2023, to reach $54 billion. The report also expects the volume of remittances to increase by 3.4 percent in the Latin America and the Caribbean region to $150 billion, to record a 0.6 percent increase in remittances to the South Asia region to $177 billion, and to increase remittances to the East Asia and Pacific region slightly. to $131 billion.
On a regional level, the World Bank estimated that remittances to the Middle East and North Africa region decreased by 4.48 percent in 2022 to $64 billion, while it was expected that these remittances would return and develop by 1.56 percent in 2023, to reach $65 billion. dollar.
Transfers to Lebanon
Domestically, the World Bank estimated the volume of expatriate remittances to Lebanon at $6.4 billion in 2022, ranking it third regionally, ahead only of Egypt ($28.3 billion) and Morocco ($11.2 billion). In addition, and always according to the estimates of the World Bank, Lebanon ranked first in the region and ranked third in the world (after Tajikistan and Tonga, where the percentage of these remittances reached 51 percent and 44 percent of GDP, respectively), in terms of the contribution of expatriate remittances to the output. GDP, which reached 35.7 percent in 2022 (53.8 percent in 2021), followed by the West Bank and Gaza Strip (21.8 percent of GDP) and Jordan (10.2 percent of GDP).
The World Bank added that the average cost of inward remittances to Lebanon from high-income countries within the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development is still very high, as Lebanon emerged in 2 among the 5 most expensive money transfer corridors.
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