Ghana is one of the largest recipients of remittances in sub-Sahara Africa in 2023. The second largest after Nigeria, which received $19.5 billion. Ghana received inflows amounting to $4.6 billion, according to the World Bank Migration and Development Brief for June 2024.
Comparing remittances with foreign direct investments (FDIs), the Bank said remittance flows to sub-Saharan Africa were nearly 1.5 times the size of FDI flows in 2023, and relatively more stable.
FDI flows to the region reached $38.6 billion in 2023, driven primarily by greenfield project announcements in Kenya and Nigeria, it said citing an UNCTAD report issued in 2024.
Remittance flows to sub-Saharan Africa reached $54 billion in 2023, a slight decrease of 0.3%.
According to the Bank, the largest recipients of remittances in the region during 2023—measured in US dollar terms—include Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, and Zimbabwe.
It said remittances have become the most important foreign exchange earner in several countries.
For example, for Kenya remittances are larger than the country’s key exports, including tourism, tea, coffee, and horticulture, it said.
It listed the following countries as being more dependent on receipts as a proportion of GDP, and they include The Gambia, Lesotho, Comoros, Liberia, and Cabo Verde, with remittances contributing more than a fifth of GDP in the first three countries.
The Bank noted that the regional growth in remittances in 2023 was largely driven by strong remittance growth in Uganda (15 percent to $1.4 billion), Rwanda (9.3 percent to $0.5 billion), Kenya (2.6 percent to $4.2 billion), and Tanzania (4 percent to $0.7 billion). Remittances to Nigeria, accounting for around 35 percent of total remittance inflows to the region, decreased by 2.9 percent to $19.5 billion.
It said remittances supported the current accounts of several African countries that were dealing with food insecurity, drought, supply chain disruptions, floods, and debt-servicing difficulties.
However, it notes that in countries heavily dependent on remittances such as The Gambia, Lesotho, Comoros, Liberia, and Cabo Verde, flows are projected to grow by 1.5% in 2024, adding that sending $200 to the region cost an average of 7.9%, almost unchanged from a year before.
By Emmanuel K Dogbevi
