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19 March 2024

70% of remittances from Qatar go to South Asia

Sudhesh Giriyan, COO, Xpress Money (Supplied)

Published
By Staff

In 2015, Qatar sent just over USD 10.4 billion in remittances to countries across the globe~ Doha - Qatar, 24th July, 2016 – Citing data from the World Bank, Xpress Money, one of the world’s most dependable money transfer brands has pointed out that South Asian countries are the largest beneficiaries of remittances originating from Qatar.

India, the largest recipient of remittances in the world received USD 3.99 billion from Qatar in 2015. Nepal followed at USD 2.02 billion, Bangladesh received USD 525 million, Sri Lanka tallying USD 511 million and Pakistan received USD 427 million. Remittances from Qatar show a strong year on year growth trend over the past 5 years. In 2014, global transfers out of the country stood at USD 10.09 billion, comparing favourably to USD 6.77 billion in 2011.

“Expatriate workers from South Asia are drawn to Qatar’s vibrant economy. They help sustain the high construction and development levels in the country as Qatar prepares for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. At the same time, these expatriates safeguard their future by investing back home and providing for their families. This is clearly visible as trends show that remittances from Qatar to the rest of the world are showing strong year on year growth, and hit their highest levels yet in 2015. The South Asia region is the biggest beneficiary of these remittance flows, which play an invaluable role in spurring economic activity and bolstering the GDP of the key beneficiary countries in that region,” says Xpress Money COO, Sudhesh Giriyan.

In the MENA region, Egypt is the largest recipient of Qatari remittances, benefitting from USD 1.05 billion. Jordan received USD 207 million from Qatar in 2015.

“Global trade and economic hubs such as Qatar are a key part of the global economy, and catalyse economic benefits for a host of countries through money transfers and remittances by expatriate workers. These remittances are directly correlated with increased consumer spending and investments in education, healthcare and infrastructure in receiving countries, and lead to a better quality of life overall,” concludes Giriyan.

Note: All data in this press release is obtained from the latest World Bank Bilateral Remittances Matrices, available at https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/migrationremittancesdiasporaissues/brief/migration-remittances-data