During 2024 the sending of remittances that Colombians abroad send to the country increased by US $ 1,756 million until reaching US $ 11,847 million, a new historical record that shows that these resources compete with the figures for direct foreign investment and They are beginning to approach the resources that they arrive in Colombia.
According to the figures of the Bank of the Republic, in December last year arrived US $ 1,098 million for that concept, also the highest figure for a month since measurements are made.
Analysts consider that the increase in migration of Colombians, especially to the US It has generated an increase in remittances, which this year could exceed US $ 13,000 million.
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In recent years, increases have been registered, except for 2020, when by the pandemic, the arrival of these resources recorded a 2.5%drop.
Thus, in 2024 the rise was 17.40%, in 2023, when US $ 10,091 million arrived, the increase was 7.02%, in 2022 when they added US $ 9,429 million to Elza was 9.6%, in 2021 year in which US $ 8,597 million arrived increased 24.40%, in 2019 when remittances were US $ 7,087 million increased 6.79% and 2018, in 2018, year in which the resources sent from the exterior were US $ 6,636 million, the growth was 14.7%.
Remittances
Although the balance of the Gross Domestic Product is missing by 2024, the remittances represented about 3% of the country’s GDP, a figure that would also be historical.
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According to a report by the Bank of the Republic, external income from workers’ remittances received by the country have been increasing in recent years at rates higher than the growth of economic activity, which has led to its proportion with respect to the gross domestic product (GDP) reach a historical maximum of 2.8% in 2024, When a decade ago they represented 1.1 % of GDP.
Remittances are an important support for Colombian families, since they are a source of income that does not depend on local economic fluctuations. In addition, they are a source of foreign exchange for the country.
Economic importance
The resources sent from abroad in 2023 represented 3.6% of the available income of households, were also 3.9% of total consumption.
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The Bank of the Republic report indicated that various studies internationally and for Colombia have shown that workers’ remittances They are the result of a migratory process in which the migrant maintains a link with his country of origin.
Hence the importance of highlighting the increase of the Colombian population resident abroad due to An important migratory flow during the last decade, which has become particularly intense in the last three years.
Remittances
The growth of the Colombian population abroad has been reflected in the increase in income from family remittances, which in June 2024 exceeded US $ 1 billion per month.
This in turn has influenced a strong increase in the number of people who are receiving these aid in Colombia: Of a little less than one million people in 2016, this figure amounted to 2.1 million Colombians in June 2024.
The issuer’s report also indicates that Colombian emigrants are mainly located in the US and in Spain.
This is how in 2020, According to United Nations figures, 45% of the Colombian population resident abroad (not including Colombians who lived in Venezuela) were in the United States and 25% in Spain.
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Hence the relevance of trying to illustrate the economic situation of the Colombian population in those countries, since in addition to the number of emigrants themselves, remittances also depend on their income, the occupations they perform and the opportunities to find work in the receiving countries.
In this regard, it can be seen that the occupational occupation of Colombians residing in the United States in services related to services (including sales and office) is significant and exceeds the average of all migrants.
This represents an important benefit for Colombian migrants in that country, if one takes into account that the services sector generates More than 75% of the United States GDP and that the unemployment rate in that sector is lower than that registered for the national total.
Holman Rodríguez Martínez
Portfolio journalist
