A remittance is money sent by a person in a foreign land to his or her home country.

Due to the
huge sums involved, remittances are now being recognized as an important contributor to the
country's growth and development.
The Central Bank of Kenya conducts a survey on remittance inflows every month through the
formal channels that include commercial banks and other authorised international remittances
service providers in Kenya.

Commentary on Remittances for August 2014
The Central Bank of Kenya conducts a survey on remittance inflows every month through the
formal channels that include commercial banks and other authorized international remittance
service providers in Kenya. Remittances inflows to Kenya increased by 20.3 per cent to USD
128.8 million in August 2014 compared with USD 107.0 million in August 2013 and by 10.0 per
cent compared to inflows recorded in July 2014 (Table 1). The source of the improvement in
August 2014 is tracked to increased inflows from North America (Table 2).
Remittance inflows remained resilient in the 12 months to August 2014, with the cumulative
flow having posted an increase of 12.4 percent to USD 1,383.0 million from USD 1,230.9
million in the year to August 2013. The 12 month average flow during the same period sustained
an upward trend to peak at USD 115.3 million from an average of USD 102.6 million (Chart 1).


Table 1: (Figures are in US$ '000)
2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004
Year : 2014
Month Remittance

Jan 110969

Feb 110421

Mar 119585

Apr 113409

May 119657

Jun 116064

Jul 117101

Aug 128826



TOTAL 936032


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Chart 1: Monthly Remittance Inflows



Remittance Inflows by Source Market
Remittance inflows from North America accounted for 50 percent of total inflows and increased
by 22 percent to USD 64.0 million in August 2014. Inflows from Europe and Rest of the world
increased marginally by 0.47 percent to USD 31.5 million and 0.56 percent to USD 33.3 million,
respectively, in August 2014 (Table 2).
Table 2: Remittance Inflows by Source, June - August, 2014