Nigeria's Remittance Inflow Drops by 20% as Government Eyes Diaspora Investment

• Nigeria's remittance inflow dropped by 20%, this is according to the Nigerians in the Diaspora Commission which tracks activities of citizens abroad
• The chairman and chief executive officer of NIDCOM, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, diaspora remittances are being used to invest in businesses and take care of families
• The Federal Government is planning to direct more remittances from Nigerians abroad, to real estate business within the country

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Remittances into Nigeria has declined by 20% from its annual inflows of $25 billion, this is according to the Nigerians in the Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM).

Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the chairman and chief executive officer of NIDCOM, stated the decline during a press briefing for the 2021 Diaspora Day celebration on Thursday.

However, World Bank's projection of Nigeria's remittance inflow put the decline at 27.7 percent in 2020.

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Remittance inflow contribution to government

Despite the fall, she explained that the contribution of the remittance inflows to the gross domestic product and national budget is significant.

According to Abike, remittance inflow accounts for 83 percent of the national budget, while it take up 6.1 percent of Nigeria's economy.

The remittance inflow recorded by the Federal Government is sourced from 17 million Nigerians living across several countries outside Nigeria.

Government eyes remittance from diaspora

According to Abike, real estate and commercial businesses take up 30 percent of diaspora remittances, while some go into school fees, feeding, hospital bills and other economic buffers and safety nets.

The government is looking to key into the remittance inflow by creating programmes that Nigerians abroad can invest into, especially real estate, according to NIDCOM CEO.

Unemployment chasing Nigerians out of the country

The remittance inflow is coming from some Nigerians who have left the country to seek greener pastures because of low employment.

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Some have also left to look for better employment in foreign countries, the World Bank made this known in its report on the job market.

The unemployment market in Nigeria is said to have become worse since 2016, causing more Nigerians to migrate.

Source: Legit.ng