Digital literacy training for expats can boost remittance flow

Staff Reporter :
Increase in remittance flow is one of the easiest ways to overcome the ongoing foreign exchange crisis, experts said.
They said initiatives should be taken to ensure that money sent through legal channels reaches the beneficiary safely and instantly along with making the remittance sending process significantly easier and in this case, digital platform can be the best medium.
Bangladesh should train migrant workers on digital literacy so that they send remittance home through legal channels and using electronic platforms instead of turning to hundi operators, they added.
The experts made the comments at a roundtable on “Remittance Through Legal Channel: Prospects of Digital Platform” organised by the Economic Reporters’ Forum at its office in the capital on Wednesday.
Speaking at the event, Planning Minister M A Mannan said, “People, who receive remittances in our country, have a kind of social and psychological distance regarding transactions by going to the bank.”
“As a result, they find it relatively easier to receive remittances from their home even via illegal channels. Remittances cannot be increased unless the distance between expatriates and the legal channels is reduced. The government is working on it. Digital platforms can play a pivotal role in this regard,” he said.
He further said, “Transactions with foreign countries remained close for three days a week in the banking channel. For this reason, hundi is being preferred as a better transaction route. The government wants to break these traditional barriers and start a new trend. These issues must be dealt with. The Ministry of Finance and Bangladesh Bank are working on this.”
Dr Ahsan H Mansur, Executive Director of the Policy Research Institute (PRI), “To increase remittances through legal channels, the dollar market needs to be balanced. Migrant workers are more inclined to send remittances via hundi when the dollar exchange rate between legal and illegal channels is high. Through various awareness programs, they can be motivated to send dollars through legal channels. Besides, attention should be paid in increasing digital services.”
Dr Bazlul H Khondker, Chairman of SANEM, said, “Currently remittance service costs more than 6 per cent globally. It should be
reduced. Remitters are choosing hundi because of the convenience of sending money quickly and at a much lower cost.”
“It will be possible to reduce the cost and time by half if digital platforms including MFS are used as legal channel,” he added.
Masrur Reaz, Chairman of Policy Exchange said, “Remittance can be brought quickly through digital channels. There is no alternative to using digital platforms to boost remittance inflow. If remittance inflow can be increased, it will be possible to meet the balance of payment deficit.”
Mohammed Monirul Moula, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited, thinks that it will be easier to deal with the existing challenge in terms of foreign reserve, if the problem of sending remittances by the expatriate workers is lessened.
If remittances are brought through digital channels, it will be easier to meet the shortage of foreign currency in the next two-three months, he added.
Sheikh Md Monirul Islam, Chief External and Corporate Affairs Officer of bKash, Khondakar Sakhawat Ali, Emeritus Fellow of Unnayan Samannay, Sormindo Nilormi, Professor of Economics of Jahangirnagar University, Md Iskandar Mia, former Executive Director and former Deputy Head of Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU), ERF President Sharmeen Rinvy and its General Secretary SM Rashidul Islam spoke on the occasion.