Diaspora remittances grow in H1 2022
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Diaspora remittances grew to $5.16 billion in the first quarter ended March (Q1 2022), rising 20.3 per cent year-on-year (YoY) from $4.29 billion in Q1 2021.
The latest Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) data shows remittances from Nigerians abroad have been on the upward trend since H3 2020.
Remittances rose 2.6 per cent in Q1 2022 from $5.03 billion in Q4 2021, the seventh consecutive quarterly increase.
But they fell 32 per cent quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) to $3.84 billion in Q1 2020 due to the economic lockdown caused by the pandemic.
The CBN in December 2020 introduced measures to encourage diaspora Nigerians to send remittances through the banking system.
The measures, among other things, allow beneficiaries to have unfettered access to, and utilisation of, foreign currency proceeds in foreign exchange (forex) cash and/or in their domiciliary accounts.
The CBN directed:
- Payment switching and processing companies to stop local currency transfer of diaspora remittances received through International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs).
- Mobile Money Operators (MMO) to disable wallets from receipt of funds from IMTOs.
And the CBN in February 2021 introduced the “Naira4Dollar” scheme, which rewards beneficiaries of remittances with N5 for every $1 of remittance sent through banks.
The World Bank said the measures helped Nigeria achieve 11.4 per cent YoY diaspora remittance growth to $19.2 billion in 2021 and projected 7.0 per cent increase in remittances to Nigeria and Sub-Saharan Africa countries in 2022.
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Europe, US backbone of remittances
“Remittance inflows to Sub-Saharan Africa soared 14.1 per cent to $49 billion in 2021 following an 8.1 per cent decline in the prior year,” the World Bank added, per Vanguard.
“Growth in remittances was supported by strong economic activity in Europe and the United States.
“Recorded inflows to Nigeria, the largest recipient country in the region, gained 11.2 percent, in part due to policies intended to channel inflows through the banking system.
“In 2022, remittance inflows are projected to grow by 7.1 percent driven by continued shift to the use of official channels in Nigeria and higher food prices – migrants will likely send more money to home countries that are now suffering extraordinary increases in prices of staples.”
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