World Bank: Saudi Arabia among biggest sources of remittances in 2020

World Bank: Saudi Arabia among biggest sources of remittances in 2020

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia was the third largest source of remittances globally in 2020, just behind the UAE and the US, according to the latest report from the World Bank. The US was the biggest source country, sending $68 billion abroad last year, while foreign workers in the UAE sent home $43 billion and those in Saudi Arabia transferred $35 billion, said the report, published Thursday. Among middle-income countries, immigrants to Russia were the biggest remitters, sending $17 billion. Remittances from Saudi Arabia have been slowly declining since 2015 as oil prices have moderated and the government has encouraged the hiring of Saudi nationals. For instance, foreign workers sent $1.8 billion to the Philippines in 2020, down 36 percent from 2015. Despite the large drop in foreign workers in Gulf Cooperation Council states, remittances from Saudi Arabia held up in 2020 thanks in part to the cancelation of travel to Saudi Arabia, which diverted funds set aside for the Hajj pilgrimage to remittances to Bangladesh and Pakistan, according to the report. Both of those countries offered tax incentives last year to boost remittances from migrant workers abroad, while a devastating flood in July 2020 also led to an increase in payments.