The Development Potential of Formal Remittances
Date
April 2020
Description
Recently, remittances have been considered as an alternative to foreign aid by policy makers. This is a result of the increasing number of remittances sent per year and the stability of remittance sending during financial crises. Organizations such as the World Bank have focused on promoting financial inclusion as a way to encourage remitters to send money in more formal ways. Formal institutions are believed to lower transaction costs, which would increase sent remittances. This increase would provide extra money that could contribute to the economic development of migrants’ home countries. This study attempts to find a correlation between transfer costs, transfer services used, and the amount of remittances sent to Latin American and Carribbean countries. These results will give us guidance as to whether or not financial inclusion should be promoted in order for migrants to have better utility over their remittance dollars.
Presentation Type
Presentation
The Development Potential of Formal Remittances
Recently, remittances have been considered as an alternative to foreign aid by policy makers. This is a result of the increasing number of remittances sent per year and the stability of remittance sending during financial crises. Organizations such as the World Bank have focused on promoting financial inclusion as a way to encourage remitters to send money in more formal ways. Formal institutions are believed to lower transaction costs, which would increase sent remittances. This increase would provide extra money that could contribute to the economic development of migrants’ home countries. This study attempts to find a correlation between transfer costs, transfer services used, and the amount of remittances sent to Latin American and Carribbean countries. These results will give us guidance as to whether or not financial inclusion should be promoted in order for migrants to have better utility over their remittance dollars.
Comments
This oral presentation is based on an individual research project.