Hawala operators expect windfall

DOHA: People running unofficial remittance channels (hawala) between Qatar and Egypt literally anticipate a ‘windfall’ if the demonstrations continue in Egypt as that would aggravate inflation and further weaken the local currency.

The operators ‘hope’ that with rising inflation back home, Egyptian expatriates here would be compelled to remit more funds to their families to help them keep pace with galloping prices.

And since banks and exchange houses remain closed in Egypt, they expect the expatriates here would be forced to use the black market for remittances.

The Qatari Riyal-Egyptian Pound rate, though remained unchanged in the unofficial remittance market here yesterday at 1.9 pounds per riyal—Wednesday’s rate—operators expect a ‘brisk’ business from today. The official riyal-pound rate has also jumped to 1.7 pounds to a riyal, although official remittances continue to be inactive.

Meanwhile, dollars are selling like hot cake in Cairo as foreigners desperate to leave trouble-torn Egypt are willing to cough up any sums in the local currency to grab the greenback. Read more

Haiti: Oklahoma Bank Partners with Haitian Microfinance Institution to Fight Poverty

A Fonkoze client signs for her loan at a weekly meeting

(CSRwire) February 28, 2008 - Fonkoze, Haiti's largest micro-finance institution, and Central National Bank of Enid, Oklahoma, have partnered to create a low-cost stored-value card that offers Haitian Diaspora and others in the U.S. both a convenient way to manage their own finances and an inexpensive way to increase income and investment in Haiti through remittances.

The two organizations recently signed an agreement under which CNB will issue a prepaid card for Fonkoze. Interactive Transaction Services, a wholly-owned subsidiary of CNB, will process the cards. Value can be stored on the cards in three ways: through direct payroll deposit, at participating banks, and through other load networks. The cards will have all the features of CNB's current prepaid card portfolio, but will also allow holders to send remittances up to $2,500 per day to Haiti for only $6 and make long distance phone calls at a competitive rate. Alianza International, a prepaid debit card and money transfer enabling company, will provide consumer marketing and remittance delivery support for CNB and Fonkoze. The product will be available on the market March 21, 2008. [Read more]

Can migrant remittances help rebuild conflict-affected states?

An important component of peace-building is maintenance of livelihoods during conflict and to ensure sustainable post-conflict recovery. The role of private individual support to war-torn communities is little researched and poorly understood by those who plan peace-building programmes and post-conflict assistance strategies.
A paper produced by the Institute for the Study of International Migration at Georgetown University in the US and International Peace Academy focuses on what is known about how migrant diasporas and their networks bring remittance funds, communications technologies and other forms of support to individuals, families and communities in politically and economically troubled environments. The study aims to explore the fields from which useful knowledge can be found. These include migrant remittance patterns, diaspora communities and their global links, peace building and post-conflict recovery, and studies of migrant support for conflict. [Read more]

Remittances during crises: implications for humanitarian response

01 Jun 2007 10:21:39 GMT01 Jun 2007 10:21:39 GMT ## for search indexer, do not remove-->
Source: Humanitarian Policy Group (HPG) - UK
Reuters and AlertNet are not responsible for the content of this article or for any external internet sites. The views expressed are the author's alone.

Remittances – migrants sending money home – are an important part of many people's lives around the world. In disasters, they can play a particularly important part in how people survive and recover because they represent a relatively stable form of income, usually increase in times of crisis and directly contribute to household income. However, humanitarian actors often fail to consider remittances in assessments and response design – a neglect that reflects a broader tendency to undervalue the capacities of crisis-affected populations. [Read more]