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Drop in global remittances may worsen poverty

Migrants who have lost wages due to COVID-19 are struggling to send funds back home to their families in poorer countries.

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A man in Miami sends a remittance to his mother in Cuba.
A man in Miami sends a remittance to his mother in Cuba.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Many migrants around the world send money back to their home countries. These are called remittances. But due to COVID-19, the World Bank is expecting remittances to decrease 20% globally in 2020, the largest decline it has ever recorded. The money sent home to family members in the developing world is often a financial lifeline that keeps people out of poverty. Without these critical funds, experts predict, many families will go without health care, food and filling other basic needs. 

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