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Rabat – Morocco has secured the second spot among the leading recipients of remittances in the Middle East and North Africa region, according to the World Bank’s latest Migration and Development Brief.
Remittances to Morocco amounted to $11.2 billion, equivalent to approximately 6.6% of the country’s Gross domestic product (GDP).
Egypt ranked first in the region, receiving remittances amounting to $28.3 billion, followed by Lebanon with $6.4 billion and Jordan with $5 billion.
Worldwide, the top five countries receiving remittances in 2022 were India with $111 billion, Mexico with $61 billion, China with $51 billion, and the Philippines with $38 billion.
The World Bank’s report highlighted that Morocco’s remittances were supported by the strong economic activity in the euro area, where a significant number of Moroccan expatriates reside, particularly in France, Spain, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
During the first quarter of 2023, remittances to Morocco increased by approximately 7% to reach $2.6 billion compared to the same period in 2022. This surpassed both tourism receipts and foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows.
Read Also: Remittances from Moroccan Diaspora Hit $10.75 Billion in 2022
Looking ahead to remittance prospects in the Middle East and North Africa region for 2023, the World Bank noted that there may be a recovery in remittances with the decline in oil prices, specifically highlighting the expected rebound in remittances to Egypt.
According to the report, remittances to the Middle East and North Africa region declined by about 4% in 2022, reaching $64 billion. The decline was primarily driven by a 10% drop in remittance flows to Egypt (amounting to $28.3 billion), as well as declines in flows to Algeria and Jordan.
The report also projected that remittance flows to the Middle East and North Africa region would recover from a 3.8 % decline in 2022 to a 1.7 % increase in 2023 and 1.8 percent gain in 2024, respectively.
“Remittances have become a financial lifeline in many economies through the pandemic and will become even more so in the foreseeable future,” said Dilip Ratha, lead author of the report on migration and remittances and head of KNOMAD.
Remittances have played a crucial role as the largest source of external resource flows for the developing Middle East and North Africa region, surpassing official development assistance (ODA) and foreign direct investment (FDI) combined, accounting for 57% of total inflows in 2022.
Given the uncertainty surrounding the global outlook and private sector flows due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the report suggests that remittances and ODA will likely remain vital for the region in the medium term.
