Dilip Ratha: The hidden force in global economics: sending money home

Prevoditelj: Ivan Stamenković Recezent: Senzos Osijek

I live in Washington, D.C.,

Živim u Washingtonu,

but I grew up in Sindhekela, a village in Orissa, in India.

ali odrastao sam u Sindhekeli, selu u Orissi, u Indiji.

My father was a government worker.

Moj otac bio je državni zaposlenik.

My mother could not read or write, but she

Moja majka nije znala čitati ni pisati, ali ona

would say to me, "A king is worshipped only in his

bi mi govorila: "Kralja štuju samo u

own kingdom. A poet is respected everywhere."

njegovom kraljevstvu. Pjesnika poštuju svugdje."

So I wanted to be a poet when I grew up.

Tako da sam htio biti pjesnik kad odrastem.

But I almost didn't go to college

Ali skoro nisam išao na fakultet

until an aunt offered financial help.

dok mi teta nije ponudila financijsku pomoć.

I went to study in Sambalpur,

Otišao sam studirati u Sambalpur,

the largest town in the region,

najveći grad u regiji,

where, already in college, I saw a television for the first time.

gdje, već na fakultetu, vidio sam televiziju po prvi put.

I had dreams of going to the United States

Imao sam snove o odlasku u Sjedinjene Države

for higher studies.

za više studije.

When the opportunity came,

Kada se pružila prilika,

I crossed two oceans, with borrowed money

prešao sam dva oceana, s posuđenim novcem

for airfare and only a $20 bill in my pocket.

za let i samo 20 dolara u džepu.

In the U.S., I worked in a research center,

U Americi, radio sam u istraživačkom centru,

part-time, while taking graduate classes in economics.

nepuno radno vrijeme, dok sam magistrirao ekonomiju.

And with the little I earned, I would

I sa to malo što sam zaradio,

finance myself and then I would send

financiorao sam sebe i onda bih slao

money home to my brother and my father.

novac kući mom bratu i ocu.

My story is not unique.

Moja priča nije jedinstvena.

There are millions of people who migrate each year.

Postoje milijuni ljudi koji se sele svake godine.

With the help of the family, they cross oceans,

Uz pomoć obitelji, prelaze oceane,

they cross deserts, they cross rivers, they cross mountains.

prelaze pustinje, prelaze rijeke, prelaze planine.

They risk their lives to realize a dream,

Riskiraju živote kako bi ostvarili san,

and that dream is as simple as having a

i taj san je jednostavan kao imati

decent job somewhere so they can send money home

pristojan posao negdje tako da mogu slati novac doma,

and help the family,

i pomoći obitelji,

which has helped them before.

koja im je pomogla prije.

There are 232 million international migrants in the world.

Postoji 232 milijuna međunarodnih migranata u svijetu.

These are people who live in a country

Ovo su ljudi koji žive u zemlji

other than their country of birth.

koja nije njihova zemlja porijekla.

If there was a country made up of

Da postoji zemlja napravljena

only international migrants,

od međunarodnih migranata,

that would be larger, in population,

bila bi veća, u populaciji,

than Brazil.

od Brazila.

That would be larger, in its size

To bi bilo veće, po veličini

of the economy, than France.

ekonomije, od Francuske.

Some 180 million of them, from poor countries,

Nekih 180 milijuna njih, iz siromašnih zemalja,

send money home regularly.

šalje novac redovno kući.

Those sums of money are called remittances.

Te svote novca zovu se novčane pošiljke.

Here is a fact that might surprise you:

Evo činjenica koja će vas iznenaditi:

413 billion dollars, 413 billion dollars

413 milijardi dolara, 413 milijardi dolara

was the amount of remittances sent last year

je iznos novčanih pošiljki poslanih prošle godine

by migrants to developing countries.

od strane migranata u zemlje u razvoju.

Migrants from developing countries,

Migranti iz zemalja u razvoju,

money sent to developing countries —

novac poslan u zemlje u razvoju —

413 billion dollars.

413 milijardi dolara.

That's a remarkable number because

To je značajan broj jer

that is three times the size of

je tri puta veći od

the total of development aid money.

iznosa novca za pomoć u razvoju.

And yet, you and I,

A ipak, vi i ja,

my colleagues in Washington,

moji kolege u Washingtonu,

we endlessly debate and

beskrajno raspravljamo

discuss about development aid,

i pričamo o novcu za pomoć u razvoju.,

while we ignore remittances as small change.

dok ignoriramo novčane pošiljke kao sitniš.

True, people send 200 dollars per month,

Istina, ljudi šalju 200 dolara mjesečno,

on average. But, repeated month after month,

u prosjeku. Ali, kada se to ponavlja iz mjeseca u mjesec,

by millions of people,

od strane milijuna ljudi,

these sums of money add up to rivers of foreign currency.

iznosi novca zbrojeno daju rijeke strane valute.

So India, last year, received 72 billion dollars, larger than

Tako da je Indija prošle godine primila 72 milijarde dolara, više

its IT exports.

nego njen izvoz IT-a.

In Egypt remittances are three times

U Egiptu su novčane pošiljke tri put veće

the size of revenues from the Suez Canal.

od prihoda Sueskog kanala.

In Tajikistan, remittances are 42 percent of GDP.

U Tađikistanu, novčane pošiljke su 42 posto BDP-a.

And in poorer countries, smaller countries, fragile countries,

U siromašnijim zemljama, manjim zemljama, krhkim zemljama,

conflict-afflicted countries, remittances are a lifeline,

zemljama koje razdiru sukobi, novčane pošiljke su spas,

as in Somalia or in Haiti.

kao u Somaliji ili na Haitiju.

No wonder these flows have huge

Nije čudo da ovaj tijek ima ogromne

impacts on economies and on poor people.

utjecaje na ekonomiju i siromašne.

Remittances, unlike private investment money,

Novčane pošiljke, za razliku od privatnog investicijskog novca,

they don't flow back at the first

ne teku natrag na prvi

sign of trouble in the country.

znak problema u državi.

They actually act like an insurance.

Ponašaju se kao osiguranje.

When the family is in trouble,

Kad je obitelj u nevolji,

facing hardship, facing hard times,

suočena s problemima, teškim vremenima,

remittances increase, they act like an insurance.

novčane pošiljke povećaju se, kao osiguranje.

Migrants send more money then.

Migranti tada šalju više novca.

Unlike development aid money,

Za razliku od novčane pomoći,

that must go through official agencies,

koja mora proći kroz ovlaštene agencije,

through governments, remittances

kroz vlade, novčane pošiljke

directly reach the poor,

dolaze direktno do siromašnih,

reach the family,

dolazi do obitelji,

and often with business advice.

i često sa poslovnim savjetom.

So in Nepal, the share of poor

U Nepalu je udio siromašnih

people was 42 percent in 1995,

ljudi bio 42 posto 1995. godine,

the share of poor people in the population.

udio siromašnih ljudi u populaciji.

By 2005, a decade later, at a

2005. godine, desetljeće kasnije, u

time of political crisis, economic crisis,

doba političke, ekonomske krize,

the share of poor people went down to 31 percent.

udio siromašnih ljudi pao je na 31 posto.

That decline in poverty, most of it,

Taj pad siromaštva, većina,

about half of it, is believed to be

polovica njega, vjeruje se da

because of remittances from India,

je uzrokovan novčanim pošiljkama iz Indije,

another poor country.

još jedne siromašne zemlje.

In El Salvador, the school dropout

U El Salvadoru, stopa ispisivanja

rate among children is lower

djece iz škole niža je

in families that receive remittances.

u obiteljima koje primaju novčane pošiljke.

In Mexico and Sri Lanka,

U Meksiku i Šri Lanki,

the birth weight of children is higher

težina djece pri porodu je viša

among families that receive remittances.

u obiteljima koje primaju novčane pošiljke.

Remittances are dollars wrapped with care.

Novčane pošiljke su dolari umotani s brigom.

Migrants send money home for food,

Migranti šalju novac kućama za hranu,

for buying necessities, for building houses,

za kupovanje potrepština, gradnju kuća,

for funding education, for funding

za financiranje obrazovanja, financiranje

healthcare for the elderly, for business

zdravstvenog osiguranja za stare, za poslovne

investments for friends and family.

investicije za prijatelje i obitelj.

Migrants send even more money home

Migranti šalju još više novca kući

for special occasions like a surgery

u posebnim prilikama kao što su operacije

or a wedding. And migrants also send

ili vjenčanje. I migranti također šalju

money, perhaps far too many times,

novac, možda previše puta,

for unexpected funerals that

za nepredviđene sprovode na kojima

they cannot attend.

ne mogu biti.

Much as these flows do all that good,

Koliko god ovi tokovi čine dobra,

there are barriers to these

postoje prepreke ovim

flows of remittances, these

tijekovima novčanih pošiljki, ovih

400 billion dollars of remittances.

400 milijardi dolara novčanih pošiljki.

Foremost among them is

Najprije među njima je

the exorbitant cost of sending money home.

pretjerani trošak slanja novca kući.

Money transfer companies structure

Tvrtke za prebacivanje novca strukturiraju

their fees to milk the poor.

svoje naknade da bi muzle siromašne.

They will say, "Up to 500 dollars

Kažu: "Do 500 dolara

if you want to send, we will charge you

ako želite slati, naplatiti ćemo vam

30 dollars fixed."

30 dolara fiksno."

If you are poor and if you have only 200 dollars to send,

Ako ste siromašni i imate samo 200 dolara za poslati,

you have to pay that $30 fee.

morate platiti tih 30 dolara.

The global average cost of sending

Globalni prosjek troška slanja

money is eight percent.

novca je osam posto.

That means you send 100 dollars,

To znači da kada šaljete 100 dolara,

the family on the other side receives only

obitelj s druge strane dobiva samo

92 dollars.

92 dolara.

To send money to Africa,

Kod slanja novca u Afriku,

the cost is even higher:

trošak je još veći:

12 percent.

12 posto.

To send money within Africa,

Slanje novca unutar Afrike,

the cost is even higher:

trošak je još viši:

over 20 percent.

preko 20 posto.

For example, sending money from Benin to Nigeria.

Na primjer, slanje novca od Benina do Nigerije.

And then there is the case of Venezuela, where,

I onda je tu slučaj Venecuele, gdje,

because of exchange controls,

zbog kontrole razmjene,

you send 100 dollars and you

šaljete 100 dolara i vi

are lucky if the family on the other side

ste sretni ako obitelj s druge strane

receives even 10 dollars.

primi makar 10 dolara.

Of course, nobody sends money to Venezuela

Naravno, nitko ne šalje novac u Venecuelu

through the official channel.

kroz službene kanale.

It all goes in suitcases.

Sve ide u kovčezima.

Whereever costs are high,

Gdje god su troškovi visoki,

money goes underground.

novac ide podzemnim putevima.

And what is worse,

I što je gore,

many developing countries actually

mnoge zemlje u razvoju zapravo

have a blanket ban on sending money

imaju zabranu slanja novca

out of the country.

van zemlje.

Many rich nations also have a

Mnoge bogate zemlje također imaju

blanket ban on sending money to specific countries.

zabranu slanja novca u određene zemlje.

So, is it that there are no options,

Je li to zbog toga što ne postoje opcije,

no better options, cheaper options, to send money?

bolje opcije, povoljnije opcije, za slanje novca?

There are.

Postoje.

M-Pesa in Kenya enables people to send money

M-Pesa u Keniji omogućuje slanje novca

and receive money at a fixed cost of only

i primanje novca uz fiksni trošak od samo

60 cents per transaction.

60 centi po transakciji.

U.S. Fed started a program with Mexico

U.S. Fed započeli su program s Meksikom

to enable money service businesses

kako bi omogućili servisima za slanje novca

to send money to Mexico

slanje novca u Meksiko

for a fixed cost of only 67 cents per transaction.

za fiksni trošak od 67 centi po transakciji.

And yet, these faster, cheaper, better options

Ali ipak, ove brže, povoljnije, bolje opcije

can't be applied internationally

ne mogu se primjeniti međunarodno

because of the fear of money laundering,

zbog straha od pranja novca,

even though there is little data

iako ima jako malo podataka

to support any connection, any significant

koji potvrđuju tu vezu, bilo kakvu značajnu

connection between money laundering

vezu između pranja novca

and these small remittance transactions.

i tih malih transakcija novčanih pošiljki.

Many international banks now

Mnoge međunarodne banke sada

are wary of hosting bank accounts

su pažljive kod pružanja usluga

of money service businesses, especially

servisima za slanje novca, posebno

those serving Somalia.

onima koji posluju u Somaliji.

Somalia, a country where the

Somalija, zemlja gdje je

per capita income is only 250 dollars per year.

prihod po glavi stanovnika samo 250 dolara godišnje.

Monthly remittances, on average, to Somalia

Mjesečne novčane pošiljke, u prosjeku, za Somaliju

is larger than that amount.

veće su nego taj iznos.

Remittances are the lifeblood of Somalia.

Novčane pošiljke izvor su života Somalije.

And yet, this is an example of

Ali ipak, ovo je primjer

the right hand giving a lot of aid,

kako desna ruka daje puno pomoći,

while the left hand is cutting the lifeblood

dok lijeva siječe izvor života

to that economy, through regulations.

te ekonomije, kroz pravilnike.

Then there is the case of poor people from villages, like me.

Onda je tu slučaj siromašnih ljudi sa sela, poput mene.

In the villages, the only place where you can

U selima, jedino mjesto gdje

get money is through the post office.

možete dobiti novac je pošta.

Most of the governments in the world

Većina vlada u svijetu

have allowed their post offices to have

dozvolila je poštanskim uredima

exclusive partnerships with money transfer companies.

da imaju ekskluzivna partnerstva sa tvrtkama za prijenos novca.

So, if I have to send money to my

Ako želim poslati novac svom

father in the village, I must send money

ocu u selo, moram poslati novac

through that particular money transfer company,

kroz određenu tvrtku za prijenos novca,

even if the cost is high.

čak i ako je trošak velik.

I cannot go to a cheaper option.

Ne mogu koristiti povoljniju opciju.

This has to go.

Ovo mora nestati.

So, what can international organizations and

Dakle, što mogu međunarodne organizacije i

social entrepreneurs do to reduce the cost

društveni poduzetnici učiniti da smanje trošak

of sending money home?

slanja novca kući?

First, relax regulations on small remittances under 1,000 dollars.

Prvo, smanjite regulativu na male novčane pošiljke ispod 1000 dolara.

Governments should recognize that

Vlade bi trebale prepoznati da

small remittances are not money laundering.

male pošiljke nisu pranje novca.

Second, governments should abolish exclusive partnerships

Drugo, vlade bi trebale poništiti ekskluzivna partnerstva

between their post office and the money transfer company.

između pošte i tvrtki za transfer novca.

For that matter, between the post office

Kad smo kod toga, između pošte

and any national banking system that

i bilo kojeg nacionalnog bankovnog sustava koji

has a large network that serves the poor.

ima veliku mrežu koja služi siromašnima.

In fact, they should promote competition,

Zapravo, trebali bi promovirati konkurenciju,

open up the partnership so that

otvoriti se partnerstvu tako da

we will bring down costs like we did,

smanjimo troškove kao što smo,

like they did, in the telecommunications industry.

kao što su oni učinili, u telekomunikacijama.

You have seen what has happened there.

Vidjeli ste što se tamo dogodilo.

Third, large nonprofit philanthropic organizations

Treće, velike neprofitne filantropske organizacije

should create a remittance platform

trebale bi stvoriti platformu za slanje novčanih pošiljki

on a nonprofit basis.

na neprofitnoj osnovi.

They should create a nonprofit

Trebali bi stvoriti neprofitnu

remittance platform to serve the money transfer

platformu za slanje novca koja će služiti tvrtkama

companies so that they can send money at a low cost,

za prijenos novca tako da mogu povoljno slati novac,

while complying with all the complex

poštujući sve složene

regulations all over the world.

pravilnike širom svijeta.

The development community should

Zajednica za razvoj trebala bi

set a goal of reducing remittance costs

postaviti cilj smanjenja troška novčanih pošiljki

to one percent from the current eight percent.

na jedan posto, sa trenutnih osam.

If we reduce costs to one percent,

Ako smanjimo troškove na jedan posto,

that would release a saving of 30 billion dollars per year.

to bi oslobodilo uštedu od 30 milijardi dolara godišnje.

Thirty billion dollars, that's larger than the entire

30 milijardi dolara, to je veće nego čitavi

bilateral aid budget going to Africa per year.

bilateralni budžet pomoći Africi svake godine.

That is larger than, or almost similar to,

To je veće, ili slično,

the total aid budget of the United States government,

čitavom budžetu za pomoć vlade Ujedinjenih država,

the largest donor on the planet.

najvećeg donatora na planetu.

Actually, the savings would be larger

Zapravo, uštede bi bile veće

than that 30 billion because remittance channels

nego tih 30 milijardi jer kanali novčanih pošiljki

are also used for aid, trade and investment purposes.

također se koriste za pomoć, razmjenu i investicije.

Another major impediment to the

Još jedna velika prepreka

flow of remittances reaching the family

u tijeku novčanih pošiljki na putu do obitelji

is the large and exorbitant

je veliki i pretjeran

and illegal cost of recruitment,

i ilegalni trošak regrutiranja,

fees that migrants pay, migrant workers

trošak koji plaćaju migranti, radnici iseljenici

pay to laborers who found them the job.

plaćaju radnicima koji su im našli posao.

I was in Dubai a few years ago.

Bio sam u Dubaiu prije nekoliko godina.

I visited a camp for workers.

Posjetio sam kamp za radnike.

It was 8 in the evening, dark, hot, humid.

Bilo je 8 navečer, mrak, vruće, vlažno.

Workers were coming back from

Radnici su se vraćali

their grueling day of work,

sa svog mučnog dana rada,

and I struck a conversation

i započeo sam razgovor

with a Bangladeshi construction worker.

sa građevinskim radnikom iz Bangladeša.

He was preoccupied that he is sending

Bio je zaokupljen time što šalje

money home, he has been

novac kući, on je

sending money home for a few months now,

slao novac kući već par mjeseci,

and the money is mostly going

i novac najviše ide

to the recruitment agent, to the labor agent

agentu za zapošljavanje, agentu za rad

who found him that job.

koji mu je našao taj posao.

And in my mind, I could picture

I u svom umu, mogao sam zamisliti

the wife waiting for

njegovu ženu kako čeka

the monthly remittance.

mjesečnu novčanu pošiljku.

The remittance arrives.

Novac stigne.

She takes the money and hands

Ona uzima novac i daje

it over to the recruitment agent,

ga agentu za zapošljavanje,

while the children are looking on.

dok djeca gledaju.

This has to stop.

To mora stati.

It is not only construction workers from Bangladesh,

To nisu samo građevinski radnici iz Bangladeša,

it is all the workers. There are millions of migrant

to su svi radnici. Postoje milijuni radnika

workers who suffer from this problem.

iseljenika koji imaju isti problem.

A construction worker from Bangladesh,

Građevinski radnik iz Bangladeša,

on an average, pays about 4,000 dollars in recruitment fees

u prosjeku plaća 4000 dolara za troškove zapošljavanja

for a job that gives him only 2,000 dollars per year in income.

za posao koji mu daje prihod od 2000 dolara godišnje.

That means that for the two years or three years

To znači da dvije ili tri godine

of his life, he is basically sending money

svog života, on šalje novac

to pay for the recruitment fees.

kako bi platio troškove zaposlenja.

The family doesn't get to see any of it.

Obitelj ne vidi ništa od tog novca.

It is not only Dubai, it is the dark

To nije samo Dubai, to je mračno

underbelly of every major city in the world.

podzemlje svakog velikog grada u svijetu.

It is not only Bangladeshi construction workers,

To nisu samo građevinci iz Bangladeša,

it is workers from all over the world.

to su radnici iz cijelog svijeta.

It is not only men.

To nisu samo muškarci.

Women are especially vulnerable to

Žene su posebno ranjive prema

recruitment malpractices.

nepravilnostima kod zapošljavanja.

One of the most exciting and newest

Jedna od najuzbudljivijih i najnovijih

thing happening in the area of remittances

stvari koja se događa na području novčanih pošiljki

is how to mobilize, through innovation,

jest kako mobilizirati, kroz inovaciju,

diaspora saving and diaspora giving.

štednju i davanje dijaspore.

Migrants send money home,

Migranti šalju novac kući,

but they also save a large amount of

ali također štede velike količine

money where they live.

novca tamo gdje žive.

Annually, migrant savings are estimated

Godišnje, štednja migranata procjenjuje se

to be 500 billion dollars.

na 500 milijardi dolara.

Most of that money is parked in

Većina tog novca stoji

bank deposits that give you zero percent interest rate.

na računima koji vam daju 0 posto kamate.

If a country were to come and offer a three percent

Kada bi se pojavila zemlja koja bi nudila 3 posto

or four percent interest rate, and then say

ili 4 posto kamate, i onda rekla

that the money would be used for building schools,

da će se novac iskoristiti za gradnje škola,

roads, airports, train systems

cesta, aerodroma, vlakova

in the country of origin, a lot

u zemlji porijekla, puno

of migrants would be interested in

bi migranata bilo zainteresirano

parting with their money because

odvojiti se od svog novca jer

it's not only financial gains that

ne bi samo financijski dobitak

give them an opportunity

dao priliku

to stay engaged with their country's development.

da ostanu uključeni u razvoj svoje zemlje.

Remittance channels can be used

Kanali novčanih pošiljki mogu se koristiti

to sell these bonds to migrants

kako bi se prodavale ove obveznice migrantima

because when they come

jer kada dođu

on a monthly basis to send remittances,

jednom mjesečno slati novac,

that's when you can actually sell it to them.

tada ih zapravo možete prodati.

You can also do the same

Isto možete učiniti

for mobilizing diaspora giving.

za mobiliziranje davanja dijaspore.

I would love to invest in a

Volio bih investirati

bullet train system in India

u sustav brzih vlakova u Indiji

and I would love to contribute to efforts

i volio bih pridonijeti

to fight malaria in my village.

borbi protiv malarije u mom selu.

Remittances are a great way of

Novčane pošiljke odličan su način

sharing prosperity between places

dijeljenja prosperiteta između mjesta

in a targeted way that benefits

na ciljan način koji doprinosi

those who need them most.

onima koji ga najviše trebaju.

Remittances empower people.

Novčane pošiljke osnažuju ljude.

We must do all we can to make remittances

Moramo učiniti sve što možemo da novčane pošiljke

and recruitment

i zapošljavanje

safer and cheaper.

postanu sigurniji i povoljniji.

And it can be done.

I to može biti napravljeno.

As for myself, I have been

Ja sam bio

away from India for two decades now.

izvan Indije dva desetljeća.

My wife is a Venezuelan.

Moja žena je s Venecuele.

My children are Americans.

Moja djeca su Amerikanci.

Increasingly, I feel like a global citizen.

Sve više, osjećam se kao globalni građanin.

And yet, I am growing nostalgic

A ipak, postajem nostalgičan

about my country of birth.

za svojom rodnom zemljom.

I want to be in India and in the U.S. at the same time.

Želim biti u Indiji i Americi u isto vrijeme.

My parents are not there anymore.

Moji roditelji nisu tamo više.

My brothers and sisters have moved on.

Moji braća i sestre otišli su.

There is no real urgency for me to send money home.

Ne postoji prava hitnost da šaljem novac kući.

And yet, from time to time,

Ali ipak, s vremena na vrijeme,

I send money home to friends,

šaljem novac kući prijateljima,

to relatives, to the village,

rođacima, selu,

to be there, to stay engaged —

kako bih bio tamo, ostao uključen —

that's part of my identity.

to je dio mog identiteta.

And, I'm still striving to be a poet

I još uvijek stremim biti pjesnik

for the hardworking migrants

za iseljenike koji teško rade

and their struggle to break free

i njihovoj borbi da se oslobode

of the cycle of poverty.

kruga siromaštva.

Thank you.

Hvala vam.

(Applause)

(Pljesak)