International Day of Family Remittances

Most migrants work at difficult and often dangerous jobs at the low end of the international economy, in order to support those who remain at home. They have their own specific goals: reduced poverty, better health and nutrition, education, improved housing and sanitation, and greater resilience in the face of uncertainty with the help of savings. They are working towards a more stable and sustainable future – a goal that the international community shares. The crucial contribution of migrant workers , through remittances and investments, has also been recognized in the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration , adopted in December 2018. Its Objective 20 indeed calls for specific actions to maximize the impact of remittances and includes the International Day for the global community to get engaged. Implementation of Objective 20 has been assessed during the first International Migration Review Forum (IMRF) , which took place in May 2022. Remittances were recognized to ...

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development , adopted in September 2015, is a global commitment to eradicate poverty and achieve sustainable development by 2030 , ensuring that no one is left behind. Its 17 specific Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) address the major challenges facing the world today. SDG 10.c commits, by 2030, to reduce to less than 3% the transaction costs of migrant remittances and eliminate remittance corridors with costs higher than 5%. Migrant remittances, however, contribute directly and indirectly to several SDGs in addition to 10.c, as outlined in IFAD’s Remittances, investments and the Sustainable Development Goals report.

  Remittances are private funds, transferred through private channels. It is obvious but also important to acknowledge the growing levels of support and endorsements from the private sector, which has increased its support for the remittances agenda . There are regulatory and policy aspects to leveraging the power of remittances , and hence governments can substantially increase their positive impact, particularly in the poorest and most remote rural areas. And through further coordinated initiatives, international financial institutions can better support the primary goal of enhancing well-being of migrant workers and their families .

  Over the past decade, migrants have sent US$5 trillion in remittances to low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) , exceeding official development assistance and equalling foreign direct investment. More than one-third of these funds have reached rural areas , where they count the most. By 2030, an estimated US$4.4 trillion in additional remittances will flow to LMICs; But behind the global numbers are individual remittances of US$200 or $300 that migrants send home regularly, so that their families can buy food, pay for housing, and meet necessary expenses. Remittance services are now much quicker and less expensive thanks to digital technologies. However, the cost of transferring US$200 across international boundaries is still high. Less than 20 years ago, remittances were literally unaccounted for, and the contributions of migrant workers remained unrecognized – though not to their families. But for the development community, it has been a gradual realization that remitt...

 The International Day of Family Remittances ( IDFR ) is a universally-recognized observance adopted by the United Nations General Assembly and celebrated on June 16th  every year. The Observance of the Day recognizes the contribution of over 200 million migrants to improve the lives of their 800 million family members back home, and to create a future of hope for their children. Half of these flows go to rural areas, where poverty and hunger are concentrated, and where remittances count the most. Through this observance, the United Nations aims to bring greater awareness of the impact that these contributions have on millions of households, but also on communities, countries, and entire regions . The Day also calls upon governments, private sector entities, as well as the civil society, to find ways that can maximize the impact of remittances through individual, and/or collective actions. The IDFR is now fully recognized at the global level, and included as one of the a ...