Remittances to Morocco Surge 200% as Pandemic Halts Travel

According to data from "Moneytrans", there was a 200% increase in the number of transactions to Morocco and more than 50% to other destinations such as the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda, reports La Map. According to this international money transfer company based in Brussels, this sharp increase in money transfers to Morocco in July is mainly due to travel restrictions related to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Indeed, says Jérémy De Smet, the CEO of Moneytrans, "Moroccan families for example have a budget dedicated to their holidays [...]. Since this year they cannot spend this money on site or bring cash in person, they send the amount to the family through our services." Furthermore, the same source points out, many remittances take place during religious holidays such as Eid al-Adha for example, and reflect the expression of great solidarity of populations of foreign origin who thus provide their support to their families in difficulty.

The figures from the National Bank of Belgium show that money transfers to or from abroad related to immigration amounted to 1.35 billion euros in Belgium. As for the money transfers of Moroccans residing in Belgium, they accounted for 39% of the number of transactions and 21% in value in 2017.