OFW remittances to PH is ‘4th largest in the world’—WB report
By Michelle Remo
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Filed Under: Remittances, government, International (Foreign)Trade, Good news, Economic Indicators, Economy and Business and Finance
MANILA, Philippines— The Philippines remained one of the world's biggest recipients of remittances in 2010 and is seen to witness a further surge in money from Filipino migrant workers in the next two years, according to the latest "Migration and Remittances Factbook" by the World Bank.
Based on the country rankings shown in the report, remittances to the Philippines were the fourth-biggest worldwide.
Remittances to the Philippines are estimated to reach $21.3 billion for the entire 2010, registering a 23-percent growth from the $17.3 billion recorded last year.
Official and latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas showed that in January to August, remittances reached $12.2 billion. The World Bank estimates, however, that some $9.1 billion more remittances were sent and will be sent to the Philippines from September to December this year.
The estimated remittances to the Philippines follow the estimates for India ($55 billion), China ($51 billion), and Mexico ($22.6 billion), which were the Top 3 biggest recipients of remittances.
Landing on the fifth place, behind the Philippines, is France, remittances to which are estimated to reach $15.9 billion.
Total remittances to all developing countries are estimated to reach $325 billion this year, up by 6 percent from last year's $307 billion and rebounding from the contraction registered in 2009 as a result of the global crisis.
Remittances to the Philippines significantly help boost growth of the domestic economy, as these largely fuel household consumption. Estimates by the World Bank said remittances to the country were equivalent to about 12 percent of its gross domestic product.
Economic managers admitted that remittances largely helped the country escape recession last year, when the latest global turmoil was said to have peaked. The Philippines grew by 1.1 percent last year, performing better than most industrialized countries, which contracted.
Remittances continued to grow this year due to higher demand for Filipino workers in more countries and in more sectors.
"The diversified destination of Filipino migrants contributed to steady growth in 2010 despite the crisis," the World Bank said.
The developmental institution has projected that remittances to the Philippines would grow further next year, consistent with the likely rise in overall remittances to developing countries.
According to World Bank, remittances to developing countries may surge further by 6.2 percent in 2011 and by 8.1 percent in 2012.
However, the bank pointed out risks to the projection, including the still high unemployment rate in the United States and some other countries that accounted for the biggest migrant workers. Should their employment situation worsen, remittances to developing countries might be adversely affected, the bank said.
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