La Hora
Today, the Inter-American Dialogue’s Migration, Remittances, and Development Program releases the presentation “Family Remittances to Latin America and the Caribbean 2023.” In the presentation, the program’s director, Manuel Orozco, analyzes the latest remittance data available for the region. Remittances are projected to grow by 9 percent in 2023, and remain five percent of regional GDP with growth rates diverging from country to country. While remittances will increase by 50 percent in Nicaragua, declines are being observed in the Caribbean countries of Jamaica and Haiti. Ranging between 20 and 30 percent, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras receive the most remittances as a percent of GDP. Lastly, despite drops in irregular entries to the US from Nicaragua, Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Ecuador, these countries has seen sustained remittance growth.
Since achieving independence in 1804 to become the world’s first free black state, Haiti has been beset by turbulent, often violent, politics and a gradual but seemingly unstoppable slide from austerity to poverty to misery.
The earthquake in Haiti has exacerbated an existing distress during the international recession and increased uncertainty of what to do and how to help.
How do patterns of migration and remittances differ across regions? What kinds of frameworks support the contributions of remittances to local development?
