Remittances to developing countries reached $251 billion in 2007

The World Bank released a revised set of estimates for remittance flows for 2007 (excel data). These estimates show that remittance flows to developing countries were $251 billion in 2007, some 5 percent higher than earlier estimates and 11 percent higher than the previous year. The M&D Brief discusses concerns over a much-publicized decline in remittance received by Mexico in the first part of 2008, and argues that remittances may instead have grown although at a slower pace. Remittances to other Latin American countries (El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala) and Asian countries (Bangladesh, Philippines and Pakistan) continue to grow robustly, underscoring the global growth in remittances.