Kenyans living and working in Saudi Arabia are now sending more money back to the country as compared to those living in the United states.
New data shows that in the last 8 months two thirds of the inflows from diaspora come from the middle eastern nation.
This came in a period when total inflows from Kenyans abroad grew in its softest since 2010, at a modest rate of 3.43 percent, equivalent to Sh13.61 billion.
The slowdown largely mirrors the impact of lingering cost of living pressures — driven by energy, food, and rent prices — which have squeezed the disposable income of households in the US.
Kenyans in the Middle East’s largest economy sent home $57.16 million (Sh8.46 billion), or 30.28 percent, more in the eight months through August to $245.95 million (Sh36.40 billion) compared with the flows in the same period last year.
Saudi Arabia, which has overtaken the UK to become the second largest source, contributed 62.27 percent of the $91.79 million growth in total flows, the data indicate.
The US, despite controlling 56.18 percent of the total remittances in the review period, posted 0.72 percent drop to $1.55 billion (Sh229.99 billion) with Kenyans there cutting remittances back home by Sh1.66 billion.
Inflation in the US rose to 3.7 percent in August from 3.2 percent a month earlier, marking the third consecutive month annualised cost of living measure increased after it had hit a two-year low.