Thursday, February 19, 2015

The Somali Remittance Lifeline

Remittances account for between 25 and 45 percent of Somalia's economy and exceed the amount it receives in humanitarian aid, development aid, and foreign direct investment combined.  As Somali money transfer operators lose their bank accounts, Somali families are losing their only formal or transparent channel through which to send money.

Adeso, Global Center on Cooperative Security, and Oxfam published on 19 February 2015 a joint report titled "Hanging by a Thread: The Ongoing Threat to Somalia's Remittance Lifeline" that explains the dilemma.