Moroccan Diaspora Remittances Drop 3.4% in 2019, Office des Changes Reports

According to a semi-annual note from the Office des Changes, reported by Hespress, the transfer of money from MRE to their country of origin recorded a 3.4% drop compared to 2018, reaching 26.77 billion dirhams. This is a sign of the fluctuation in the level of remittances from the Moroccan diaspora. These transfers were higher than the level reached between 2015 and 2017, going from 23 to 24.5 billion dirhams.

The Office notes that, during the past year, the sums transferred amounted to 64.92 billion dirhams, compared to 65.89 billion dirhams in 2017. Among the countries that are the biggest providers of foreign exchange transferred by MRE, the Office cites, among others, France, with 35.5% of the total recorded, followed by Italy (9.4%) and Spain (8.6%).

However, another very important finding is the impressive increase in "remittances from Moroccans established in the Gulf countries, which amounted to around 11.6 billion dirhams in 2018". This, according to the Office, "represents nearly 18% of the total transfers recorded".

It should be emphasized that the contribution of MRE represents one of the main sources of foreign exchange supply which, according to the same source, influences the country’s trade balance. This situation should not make us forget the undeniable support that these money transfers provide to family members who are in the Kingdom.