- MANILA, Philippines: Officials says Filipinos working abroad have sent home $20.1 billion last year, up 7.2 percent from 2010.
Juan de Zuniga Jr. of the Philippine central bank said Wednesday the amount is around 9 percent of GDP and surpasses the banks’ projected 7 percent rise.
He says the diversity of destinations and skills as well as a large network of money transfer facilities available have made remittances resilient despite the political turmoil in parts of the Middle East and North Africa and a weaker global economy due to the eurozone’s debt crisis.
Nearly 10 percent of 94 million Filipinos work abroad, sending home money that boosts the economy.
The US, Canada, Saudi Arabia and UK are among major sources of remittances.