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Who is receiving Your hard Earned Remittances in Kenya?
A recent survey in Kenya conducted on behalf of the World Bank and the Central bank of Kenya has established that men are the major recipients of remittances sent from Kenyans living and working abroad. The interesting study showed that six out of every 10 recipients of Diaspora remittances are male. In Mexico, Latin America and Caribbean, women are the major recipients of remittances. The survey also concurs with the point that remittances bolster the middle class, 64 per cent of the recipient household earned between Sh10,000 ($125) and Sh 50,000($462 ) a month . For many Kenyans this amount of income will not afford them affluence but is enough to afford basic needs. The remittances sent back to Kenya also benefit the emerging middle class and not the poor who really need it. Some 14 per cent (2.6 million) of Kenya’s 18.7 million adults receive remittances an average seven times a year, with the average amount being $105. Most of their relatives reside in the US, UK and the Middle East. A typical remittance benefited four people, further proof of Kenya’s tightly-knit families of who 35 per cent reported having a relative abroad. Kenyans abroad sent back Sh152 billion or $1.9 billion in 2009 which is more than foreign Aid or investment to the country. This reveals that for Kenya, remittances from the Diaspora is the major foreign exchange earner and can also be a driver of economic growth. Could the distinction of men vs women receiving remittances in Kenya be attributed to the patriarchal Kenyan society? or are more women migrating than men in kenya compared to Mexico, Latin America and Caribbean? This are future research questions that need to be explored.
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