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View Full Version : Haitian remittances are in billions



NewsWhore
08-30-2010, 06:30 PM
Although no precise figures are available, some conservative estimates place total remittances sent back to Haiti by workers in the Dominican Republic at nearly one billion dollars a year. The lack of precise data is due to the informal structure of sending remittances to Haiti, generally speaking. El Caribe newspaper suggests that most of the money, as well as packages, are sent through the use of a "pote", which in Creole means "bring", who travels back and forth, carrying money and mail and other items for delivery to people on both sides of the border. El Caribe reporters visited areas frequented by Haitians, such as the Mercado Modelo and "Little Haiti" in Santo Domingo, and found that the use of "potes" came about from the need of the illegal immigrants to have some way of communicating with family members in Haiti. One young Haitian said that formal remittance companies were not accessible to illegal immigrants because they require some sort of identification such as a passport or a "cedula". The "potes" make frequent trips back and forth, carrying money and items that the workers accumulate between trips.
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