Morocco's Diaspora Remittances Exceed MAD 50 Billion by May

The number shows an increase of 8.8% year-on-year.

The remittances from Morocco’s Diaspora exceeded MAD 50.22 billion ($5.36 billion) by the end of May.

Morocco’s Foreign Exchange Office said the number is up from MAD 46.16 billion ($4.93 billion) during the same period a year earlier.

The number represents an increase of 8.8% year-on-year.

The report also indicated a positive trend in travel balance, which recorded nearly MAD 40 billion ($4.27 billion), representing a 19.4% increase.

The office attributes the surplus to a stronger increase in travel receipts, which rose 14.6% to MAD 53.76 billion ($5.74 billion) compared with a 2.7% rise in travel expenditures, which reached MAD 13.77 billion ($1.47 billion).

Morocco’s diaspora remittances have long played a central role in the country’s economy.

Morocco has launched a series of institutional, regulatory, and banking reforms to improve access to financial services for remittance recipients and strengthen the contribution of Moroccans living abroad to the country’s economic development, the Moroccan central bank, Bank Al Maghrib, announced in June.

The bank also pledged that it has worked with various stakeholders to improve the efficiency and transparency of money transfer services, expand digital access to financial services, and reduce transfer costs. One key measure was ending the exclusivity agreements that international operators previously imposed on local partners.

Morocco has been strengthening its position as one of the largest recipients of remittances in the MENA region.

Foreign Affairs Minister Nasser Bourita emphasized the importance of remittances in a speech in 2023, but warned that the cost of transferring remittances in Africa is the highest in the world.

He described this issue as of “critical” importance to African economies.

Facilitating and reducing fees of remittance transfers for the African diaspora is “fundamental” given the important role that remittances play in the continent’s economy, Bourita stressed.