Diaspora's $56.5B: Fueling Moldova's economic engine
Moldovans in the diaspora are projected to send home an estimated $3.5 billion in 2025, a sum on par with 2024.
According to economist Veaceslav Ioniță's calculations, the diaspora has transferred a total of $56.5 billion to Moldova between 2000 and 2025.
The diaspora's contribution is also visible in the national budget, where it’s estimated at 13.4%. This means that one in every seven lei in the budget is contributed by citizens from abroad.
From 2003 to 2018, the money sent by the diaspora consistently exceeded the total volume of salaries paid in the country. In 2013, for instance, remittances totaled $3.3 billion, compared to $1.8 billion in salaries, according to Ioniță's data.
According to another metric, in several years, remittances have surpassed the value of national exports. In 2008, Moldova’s exports were $1.6 billion, while the money sent from abroad was significantly higher.
In 2025, remittances could once again equal or even exceed the value of exports, with the estimated sum being $3.5 billion, Ioniță pointed out.
On Friday, August 15, at the Diaspora Congress, President Maia Sandu declared that Moldovans living abroad are a "strategic actor" for the country’s present and future. The head of state also emphasized the substantial contribution of Moldovans from abroad to the national economy’s development.
The Diaspora Congress, in its 11th edition, brought together over 700 Moldovans from abroad who discussed topics including Moldova's European integration, the fight against disinformation, and the diaspora's involvement in local development.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
