Nairobi – Kenyans living abroad sent home 8.4 per cent more money in 2015, increasing their remittances to a record 1.54 billion US dollars, the Country’s Central Bank said on Friday.
According to the report, cash from abroad is a major source of foreign exchange for the import-dependent economy, along with earnings from tea, tourism and horticulture.
Kenyans abroad typically send money to help their families and for investments such as real estate.
Last year’s remittances offered much-needed support to the Kenyan shilling, which fell close to its record low of 107 per dollar last September before.
The shilling is up 0.5 per cent against the dollar this year, bucking the trend among other major African currencies, which have been hit by a rout in global commodities markets. (Reuters/NAN)