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THE Philippines remained in the top five recipients
of remittances last year as money sent home by Filipinos working
abroad rose double-digit, according to a World Bank report.
In its new Migration and
Remittances Factbook 2008, the Washington-based lender said the
Philippines ranked fourth with an estimated $17 billion remittances
sent home last year, or higher than the $15.25 billion in
remittances recorded in 2006.
The other top recipients of
migrant remittances were India $27 billion; China $25.7 billion;
Mexico $25 billion; and France $12.5 billion.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
earlier reported that inflows of remittances reached $14.45 billion,
13.2-percent higher over the 2006 figure and exceeding the
$14-billion target of the government. Remittances in 2006 totaled
$12.8 billion.
Dilip Ratha, senior economist of
World Bank and author of the book, said that in many developing
countries, remittances provide a lifeline for the poor.
“They are often an essential
source of foreign exchange and a stabilizing force for the economy
in turbulent times,” Ratha said.
Uri Dadush, director of the World
Bank’s Development Prospects Group and International Trade
Department, said migration is sometimes used as a political pawn,
and policies are too often based on anecdotes or misconceptions.
For 2007, recorded remittances
flows worldwide were estimated at $318 billion, of which $240
billion went to developing countries . These flows do not include
informal channels, which would significantly enlarge the volume of
remittances if they were recorded.
The World Bank said rich
countries are the main source of remittances. The United States is
by far the largest, with $42 billion in recorded outward flows in
2006. Saudi Arabia ranked the second largest, followed by
Switzerland and Germany.
The US was also the top
immigration country in 2005, with 38.4 million immigrants, followed
by the Russian Federation (12.1 million) and Germany (10.1 million).
Among low-income countries, India had the highest immigration volume
(5.7 million) followed by Pakistan (3.3 million).
 --Darwin
G. Amojelar
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