Expatriate Latin American workers become region's biggest benefactor

Latin American expatriates sent some 62 billion dollars to their home countries last year, more than all of the combined direct foreign investment and aid to the region, according to data released Monday.
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), whose board of governors is meeting here Monday and Tuesday, said the remittances by migrant workers from Latin America and the Caribbean last year was 14 percent higher than for 2005.
And the predicted the figures will continue to rise: In 2007, development experts expect expatriate remittances to Latin America and the Caribbean to reach some 72 billion dollars, and could exceed 100 billion dollars by 2010.
"Given present economic and demographic trends in Latin America and the Caribbean and in industrialised countries, remittances will continue to grow in volume over the next few years," said Donald Terry, who heads up the IDB's Multilateral Investment Fund, the arm of the bank which promotes small business enterprise.