RIYADH: The total remittances sent from Saudi Arabia exceeded $16.2 billion last year, ranking it as the second largest country in terms of remittance outflows followed by Switzerland and Germany. The US, which has been the top immigration country, is also by far the largest source of outflows, with more than $42 billion in recorded remittance transfers annually.
This was disclosed by Sami Al-Rajhi, who has been appointed as head of Enjaz Network, the remittance division of Bank Albilad, here yesterday. A versatile banker Al-Rajhi, who brings with him more than 20 years of experience, will be responsible for operating the Enjaz remittance centers Kingdomwide. He has also been entrusted with the task to respond to regulatory authorities, working with auditing teams and take corrective measures to boost Enjaz operation.
Referring to the new World Bank report on remittances with special reference to Saudi Arabia, Al-Rajhi said: “For 2007, recorded remittances flows worldwide are estimated at $318 billion, of which $240 billion went to developing countries.” “However, these flows don’t include informal channels, which would significantly enlarge the volume of remittances if they were recorded,” said the Enjaz official, while referring to hawala modes of sending money.
He pointed out that the US, Saudi Arabia and Germany have the highest volume of outgoing remittances. “Other countries, such as India and Mexico, are net receivers, with the incoming flow of remittances received exceeding the sum of those sent,” noted Al-Rajhi. Of the estimated $230 billion in global remittances, around $167 billion are believed to have gone to developing nations, thereby exceeding the amount of official aid, and equivalent to 90 percent of foreign direct investment (FDI) received by those countries.
He said that Switzerland, Germany and Russia were the other top three countries from where remittances were generated. To this end, he noted that the Kingdom has succeeded in cutting the ratio of expatriate remittances to its gross domestic product (GDP) by 50 percent in 15 years.
While referring to another financial report, he said that the four other Arab countries — the UAE, Lebanon, Kuwait and Qatar — are among the 20 leading countries in terms of expatriate remittances.
The share of the four Arab states touched $13 billion. There are close to 8.5 million expatriates in Saudi Arabia alone, who have been playing major role in booming remittance business. The remittance from Saudi Arabia will grow consistently as World Bank also forecasts that by 2020 remittances to developing countries will reach $200 billion annually.
According to the report, Egyptians working abroad transferred more than five billion in 2006, with Saudi Arabia being the biggest source of money transfers, followed by Libya and the US.