KUWAIT CITY, Sep 17: Official data from the Central Bank of the Philippines revealed that there has been a decline in remittances by 2.15% sent by Filipino workers from Kuwait during the last seven months of this year, totaling $317.07 million, down from $324.03 million during the same period in 2023. Despite the drop from Kuwait, overall remittances from Filipino workers in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries grew by 4% year-on-year, reaching $3.2 billion in the first seven months of 2024, compared to $3.08 billion during the same period in 2023. Saudi Arabia continued to lead in remittances, with $1.17 billion sent home by Filipino workers in the first seven months of 2024, marking a 4.39% annual increase. Bahrain recorded the lowest remittances among Gulf nations, with $158.8 million, up 3.6% from $153.2 million in 2023.The statistics also showed that remittances from GCC countries made up 16.55% of the total remittances from Filipino workers worldwide, which amounted to $19.33 billion during the first seven months of 2024. Furthermore, remittances from the Gulf represented 41.7% of total remittances from Filipino workers in Asia, which reached $7.67 billion. In the broader Middle East region, remittances totaled $3.32 billion, with 96.22% coming from GCC countries. The World Bank has projected that remittances to low- and middle-income countries will grow by 2.3% in 2024, although this growth is expected to vary across different regions.
