By this time next year, LIRNEasia will have much to say on this subject.
Western Union Empire Moves Migrant Cash Home – New York Times
With five times as many locations worldwide as McDonald’s, Starbucks, Burger King and Wal-Mart combined, Western Union is the lone behemoth among hundreds of money transfer companies. Little noticed by the public and seldom studied by scholars, these businesses form the infrastructure of global migration, a force remaking economics, politics and cultures across the world.
Last year migrants from poor countries sent home $300 billion, nearly three times the world’s foreign aid budgets combined.
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2 Comments
Donald Gaminitillake
Interesting from telegrames to money trasfers
In srilanka Ceylinco group promoted this product with lots of ad on TV “Uncle Johnson” sending the money to buy a wedding ring!!!!
Today Ceylinco is out of this western union but Peoples Bank has taken agency!!! Also I have seen NDB and Aitkenspence has joined.
Donald
Jimmy T
One would expect remittances to remain relatively stable because the money isn’t usually used for investments, but I guess unemployment is going to hurt just about everyone! Here is an interesting article on why remittances might fall in the next couple of years: https://www.mindreign.com/en/mindshare/Global-Economics/Remittances/sl35291137bp484cpp10pn1.html
Ashwini Natesan at Factum’s ‘Case for and against the Online Safety Act’ panel discussion
On February 26, Factum, with the support of the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI), officially launched a policy report titled “Online Safety’s Impact on Human Rights and Digital Governance.”As part of this launch, a panel discussion titled “Case for and Against the Online Safety Act” was organized.
LIRNEasia is hiring: Communications Assistant
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Pakistan’s AI ambitions require strong data governance
Pakistan’s Indus AI Week reflects a growing shift in how the country is approaching artificial intelligence, not simply as a technological trend, but as a strategic tool for economic growth, public sector reform, and national competitiveness. In an article published on March 5, 2026, in the ProPakistani news platform, Muhammad Aslam Hayat, Senior Policy Fellow at LIRNEasia, notes that discussions during the event highlighted ambitions to use AI to improve productivity, create new economic opportunities, and enhance government efficiency.
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