A report into a pilot project involving 640 Tongan and Samoan RSE workers has found that they sent home more than 40 per cent of their take-home income between November 2014 and June 2015 –an average of between $4,600 and $5,500 (US$2,996) – US$3,583).
“Remittances have been playing an increasingly important role in reducing the scale and severity of poverty in the developing world,” says Woodhouse.
“The World Bank estimates that in 2013, remittances made up approximately 20 percent of GDP in Samoa and Tonga respectively.