Indicator 17.3.2 Volume of remittances (in United States dollars) as a proportion of total GDP

Goal 17: Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development

Target 17.3: Mobilize additional financial resources for developing countries from multiple sources

17.3.2. Volume of remittances (in United States dollars) as a proportion of total GDP

November 2021

Not Applicable

Bank of Uganda

Bank of Uganda

Constance Kabibi

Statistics Department

Head, Quality Assurance and Data Dissemination Section

+256 312 392000

P.O. Box 7120 Kampala

statistics_dissemination@bou.or.ug

Definition:

Personal remittances received as proportion of GDP is the inflow of personal remittances expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Concepts:

Personal remittances comprise of personal transfers and compensation of employees. Personal transfers consist of all current transfers in cash or in kind made or received by resident households to or from non-resident households. Personal transfers thus include all current transfers between resident and non-resident individuals. Compensation of employees refers to the income of border, seasonal, and other short-term workers who are employed in an economy where they are not resident and of residents employed by non-resident entities. Data are the sum of two items defined in the sixth edition of the IMF’s Balance of Payments Manual: personal transfers and compensation of employees.

Percent

Balance of Payments Manual 6th Edition

Volume of personal remittances data are sourced from the Annual Personal Transfers Survey (APTS), a household survey conducted by Bank of Uganda. The survey results are supplemented by monthly transaction statistics from the Money Transfer Operators also compiled by Bank of Uganda. These are combined to obtain the compensation of employees and personal transfer statistics that are the input into the Balance of Payments Statistics. GDP data, which is sourced from the Uganda Bureau of Statistics national accounts statistics, is used as the denominator.

Data is collected through a household survey and administrative data submitted by Money Transfer Operators.

The annual survey is conducted in March for the data referring to the previous year. Administrative data is submitted on a monthly basis to the Bank.

September 2022

Bank of Uganda; Uganda Bureau of Statistics

Statistics Department, Bank of Uganda

The Bank of Uganda (BOU) collects data on the Balance of Payments (BOP) under authorization from the Uganda Bureau of Statistics. As empowered by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics Act, 1998, the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) is responsible for collecting, compiling, analyzing, and disseminating national statistics. Section 21 of the Statistics Act 1998 states that, UBOS can delegate authority to institutions to compile and disseminate specified statistical data. In a memorandum of understanding signed between UBOS, the BOU, and the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), UBOS delegated to the BOU the responsibility to collect, compile, and disseminate monetary and external sector statistics.

Remittances are a key source of financial resource important for economic growth in developing economies. Remittances provide the catalyst for financial market and monetary policy development in developing countries. Remittances improve credit constraints on the poor, improve the allocation of capital, substitute for the lack of f inancial development and thus accelerate economic growth.

Limitations arise from the lag associated with the survey.

Personal remittances are the sum of two items defined in the sixth edition of the IMF’s Balance of Payments Manual: personal transfers and compensation of employees.

Volume of remittances (in United States dollars) as a proportion of total GDP = (Personal Remittances + Compensation of Employees) / GDP*100%

The data undergoes validation checks before it is included in the BOP statistics and prior to dissemination of data conducted by the Quality Assurance Section in the Statistics Department.

Balance of Payments Manual Sixth Edition

Annual Personal Transfers Survey follows documented sampling, fieldwork and analysis procedures that allow for quality control. The processing and analysis follow statistical principles for analyzing data and uprating of data.

The data undergoes validation checks before it is included in the Balance of Payment statistics and prior to dissemination of data conducted by the Quality Assurance Section in the Statistics Department.

Data on the remittances is compared with other data on inflows to ensure that it is consistent with the behavior of other macroeconomic indicators.

Data is available from 2001 to date and is reported in aggregated form.

Data is fully comparable with other countries’ data. Differences could exist in the scope of compensation of employees and personal transfers and these differences are included in the metadata when they occur.

Data are compiled in accordance with the sixth edition of the Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual (BPM6). The manual is available at: https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/bop/2007/bopman6.htm