Remittances increase by 115 percent in Burundi

Burundi remittances is now said to have increased by 115 percent according to the country’s Central Bank (BRB), while addressing the press the BRB Governor said that the measures to lift restrictions on money transfer has already created a positive impact on the country’s economy.

In October, 2022, Burundi’s Central Bank lifted the restrictions on instant foreign exchange transfers that was put in place for more than 3 years.

“One month after the implementation, transfers from abroad increased by 115% and the level of instant currency transfers increased by 529%,” said the BRB Governor Dieudonne Murengerantwari.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) report 2022, Burundi is at high risk of debt distress and debt is assessed as sustainable contingent on fiscal adjustment and robust export and growth performance.

IMF indicated that the external imbalances have been exacerbated by the pandemic and inward spillovers from the war in Ukraine, IMF called for recalibrating of the exchange rate policy and modernizing the monetary policy framework (MPF), the MPF objective is price stability, using monetary aggregate targeting.

“Calibrating the timing of deferring accommodative monetary policy to address inflationary pressures. This includes preparing to recalibrate supportive monetary policy measures, including liquidity provisions to banks, and wind down the use of the special refinancing windows created during the pandemic with timely signaling to the market,” IMF report reads.

BRB indicates that 356 requests have already been received by the bank for the opening of forex bureaus and that an exchange meeting with operators in the sector was organized on November 18, 2022.

Burundi Central Bank as so far carried out several monetary reforms in efforts to stabilize the country’s economy that was severely hit since 2015.

Mr. Dieudonne Murengerantwari said that all multiple foreign exchange margins applied on foreign exchange transactions have been removed as contained on margins applicable by commercial banks on foreign exchange transactions with customers by replacing them with a single margin of 2%, from the official exchange rate published by the BRB.