Migrants hit by high fees to send money home

Migrants Face High Fees to Send Money Home Sending money across borders, especially in Africa, can still be an expensive endeavor. Migrants who rely on remittances to support their families back home are hit by high fees, which often take a significant portion of their hard-earned money. Remittances, the money sent by migrants to their home countries, play a vital role in alleviating poverty and promoting economic development. According to the World Bank, remittances to low- and middle-income countries reached a record high of $540 billion in 2020, despite the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the cost of sending money remains a major hurdle for many migrants. The average cost of sending remittances to sub-Saharan Africa is 8.2%, far above the global average of 6.5%. These high fees disproportionately affect the most vulnerable populations who can least afford them. In recent years, the international community has made efforts to reduce remittance costs. The Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations in 2015 include a target to reduce the average cost of remittances to below 3% by 2030. Yet, progress in achieving this target has been slow, and much work remains to be done. One of the main reasons for the high cost of remittances is the dominance of banks and money transfer operators (MTOs) in the market. Many migrants still rely on traditional banks or MTOs to send money