Remittances increased in 2007

[NewsWhore]

The multi-billion dollar business of sending remittances to the DR is better than ever. According to El Caribe, over the last ten years, the amount sent to the country has increased by UD$2 billion. In 2007 alone, Dominicans living overseas sent home a total of US$2.98 billion. With a population of about nine million and with 14% of Dominican living overseas, the Immigration Department estimates that 1.5 million Dominicans live outside the country. According to Freddy Ortiz, the president of the Remittance Association, almost 40% of the money received goes to rural areas, and 60% goes to poor people or families. Over the last few years, the Dominican Republic has become the fourth largest recipient of remittances in Latin America, with only Mexico, Brazil and Colombia getting more money, according to the Inter-American Development Bank.

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