In June we celebrated the International Day of Family Remittances (IDFR), an event adopted by the United Nations and celebrated in June every year by anyone involved in international money transfer.
So, we have asked Small World customers what it means to them to be able to send money home to their friends and family.
What kind of contribution are they able to make when they send money to Nigeria, Bangladesh, The Philippines, Colombia, and many more places across the world?
Celebrated on a global level, the IDFR highlights the contribution migrant workers make to both the country they move to and their country of origin. And, of course, the benefits that their money transfer home brings friends and family.
According to the International Fund for Agricultural Development ( IFAD), the occasion “recognises the contribution of over 200m migrant workers to improve the lives of their 800m family members back home, and to create a future of hope for their children”.
What does fast and reliable money transfer mean for our customers?
Many of Small World’s customers send money home to help out with their family’s basic needs. For migrant workers, sending money home safely, securely and in a cost-effective way is very important. At Small World we have reached out to some of our customers to ask them about the impact their remittances have on their family and friends.
Florefina in the Philippines, explains: “ Sending money to my family and close friends [for daily necessities] helps them to have a better quality of living.”
“In times of need and emergencies they can count on us to send help. Also, on special days like birthdays and at Christmas we can show them how much they mean to us by sending money.”
Sending money home to pay for medical bills
Another Small World customer, Maria, is able to help her family with general expenses, but the money she sent was especially helpful when her sister was ill. Having support from the agent network at Small World, made sending money easy: “The operators are so nice and polite, they always solve my requests as I don’t always manage that well with the technology.”
When Geraldine’s mother was diagnosed with breast cancer back home, she was not only able to send money to The Philippines to pay for the urgent hospital fees, but she has been able to provide ongoing financial support for treatment and medication.
Her ability to help from abroad has been a huge relief for her and her family.
“My mom was a victim of breast cancer and she needed to undergo to urgent medical operation, chemotherapy and all medications. It was a relief that they could receive the remittance fast to make the hospital's initial payment. I will continue sending for her therapy and medications.”
When you send money home, what’s important to you?
“The speed and time saved by using Small World [for international remittance] are good for my business,” explains Tomasz, a customer of Small World who sends money to Poland. The money he sends home to family in Poland means he can support their personal and business development.
Alicia has managed to help her family buy a home in The Philippines and is pleased that she can invest money back into her country of birth. She tells us that she’s proud to be “helping fellow Filipinos by investing in our country. I can help my country by investing in its future for other families.
” For Rosa, who lives in the UK but sends money to The Philippines, she can pay for her grandson’s private school education, and her money transfer via Small World contributes towards her son’s finances too.
She says: “Education is the priority. Hopefully my grandson will be able to finish university.”
Patrick in Ireland is able to send money home for bills food and household expenses, and is “very happy to be able to support them”. He can help celebrate birthdays and also send money for his grandchildren.
Like many of Small World’s customers – Maria, Rosa, Patrick, Tomasz, Alicia and Geraldine are proud to be able to give their families a better, more promising future.
Why is international money transfer so important?
According to the IFAD, before the Covid-19 crisis, the projected sum of money in international remittances to be sent to developing countries between 2015 and 2030, was US$6.5 trillion.
Family remittances have a “direct impact on the lives of 1bn people – one out of seven individuals on earth”. In 2019, there were approximately 200m migrant workers providing essential services to important economic sectors in more than 40 high income countries.
These workers sent essential financial resources to an estimated 800m of their relatives living in more than 125 countries.
With fast money transfer, a variety of ways to send your money and constantly low prices, Small World is supporting this growing population.
