Despite the hard-economic times experienced globally, Kenyans abroad sent more money back home.
According to the latest economic survey by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), diaspora remittances remained robust and increased by 14.3 percent from Ksh.289.5 billion in 2019 Kenyans to Ksh.330.8 billion in 2020.
In July this year, money sent home by Kenyans in foreign countries hit a monthly record of Ksh.37 billion according to data from the Central Bank of Kenya, two months after diaspora remittances crossed the $300 Million mark to defy the negative effects of the COVID-19.
North America contributed Ksh.22.68 billion, Europe Ksh.7.8 billion while Ksh.6.5 billion was contributed by the rest of the world.
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According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), the labour market disruption in 2020 exceeded the impact of the global financial crisis of 2009.
The global decline in working hours in 2020 translated into both employment losses and a reduction in working hours for those who remained employed.
As a result, global labour income in the year under review declined by 8.3 percent, amounting to Ksh. 406,60 trillion (US$3.7 trillion), representing 4.4 percent of global Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
This is contrary to projections made in 2020 that predicted that remittances in low and middle income countries were likely to decrease as a result of the pandemic.
The increase in remittance flows to Kenya has been attributed to financial innovations in fintech that have seen money transferred through mobile phones. This has made it easy and convenient for families to send and receive money despite global restriction of movement and lockdowns.
