[Economics] Remittances could mean 5% of GDP in Venezuela

[FRIDAY THE 13]

The estimated income of remittances for 2023 is around 3,000 million dollars, with a slight reduction compared to 2022, estimates the economist Asdrúbal Oliveros, partner director of Ecoanalítica.

Oliveros points out that this amount is equivalent to only 5% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), still very low compared to the around 10% average of Latin American GDP that remittances represent, due to a constant migratory movement.

Mexico and Central America concentrate most of the remittances received in the region.

"The remittances received by the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) during 2022 showed a growth of 11.6% compared to those observed a year earlier," says a report from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

"This increase is less than half of what was registered in 2021 (25.9%)... The growth of remittances in 2022 meant an additional influx of resources of US$15,072 million compared to the previous year for families in the region," he continues. The report.

Oliveros estimates that remittances could register a more aggressive growth in the coming years until they represent 10% of the Venezuelan GDP to match the weight in economic value that these incomes have in the rest of the countries in the region.

"Four years ago, remittances did not represent anything in Venezuela, but they will be increasingly relevant," Oliveros said at an event organized by the Andrés Bello Catholic University (UCAB).

Indeed, even though Venezuela already had more than 7 million migrants at the end of 2022, data from the Inter-American Development Bank does not place the country as a relevant destination for these flows.

By amounts, in South America Colombia stood out with 9,429 million dollars, equivalent to 2.8% of GDP; Ecuador, with 4,961 million dollars (4.3% of GDP); Brazil, with 4,711 million dollars (0.3% of GDP); Peru, with 3,866 million dollars (1.6% of GDP) and Bolivia with 1,436 million dollars (3.3% of GDP).
https://noticiasaldiayalahora.co/economia/remesas-podrian-significar-5-del-pib-en-venezuela/