Friday, February 6, 2015

UN Envoy to Somalia Warns against Cutting Off Remittances

Foreign Policy published on 5 February 2015 an article titled "U.N. Envoy to Somalia Warns against Cutting Off Remittances" by Jamila Trindle.  Nicholas Kay, the UN Special Representative for Somalia described the remittances from the diaspora as the "lifeblood and survival mechanism for many, many Somalis."

At a February 6 session in Washington organized by the Center for American Progress, Kay reiterated his concern over this matter.  He said annual remittances to Somalia from the disapora are running at between $1.2 and $1.8 billion.  This compares to a Somali government budget of $260 million.