Remittance Inefficiencies

A paper by Uche Nworah on the Nigerian Diaspora highlights amongst other things, inefficiencies in the allocation of remittance revenues. "...the issue of foreign remittances back to Africa has become a subject of interest in the international community. According to a recent report (Migrations and Development) by the International Development Select Committee (UK), over $300 Billion was sent from developed to developing countries in 2003 by diasporas living in the developed countries. Global remittance, the report maintains is growing faster than official development assistance from the developed countries, also global remittance is the second largest source of external funding for developing countries, behind Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), and also accounts for as much as 27% of the GDP for some African countries. The report also says that global remittance accounts for 5% of GDP in Nigeria, this figure is predicted to increase in the coming years. A U.S government official recently claimed that Nigerian diasporas remit back to Nigeria the sum of $12 billion annually, while other sources claim that Nigerians send a total of $3Billion annually through the official channels of the Western Union and other financial institutions. While there appears to be different conflicting figures with regards to the exact amount of such capital outflows or global remittances back to Africa and Nigeria in particular, the fact remains that it is a phenomenon that is on the increase and also one that is good for the continent, sadly though, such remittances have not been channeled effectively by the recipients to areas that will yield long term benefits and sustainable growth..."
Via Global Politician