Remittances are already a lifeline for many people in developing countries — but with reforms to the system, leaders across Europe and Africa believe they could become a key driver of global development.

In 2016, foreign workers sent $429 billion in remittances to developing countries through formal channels, according to the World Bank. That is more than three times higher than official development assistance allocated in the same year — and the true figure is higher still.

But the system is plagued by problems, including issues surrounding access, transparency, bureaucratic hurdles, and — most seriously — significant fees and charges attached to even the smallest transaction. The World Bank reports that the average worker sending $200 back to his family in the first quarter of 2017 had to spend 7.45 percent — about $15 — on fees and charges. And that figure does not take into account the time or expense that the person receiving the money spends on traveling to an institution and recovering it.

There is now an international movement to improve the system, headlined by Sustainable Development Goal 10, which calls for the cost of migrant remittances to be slashed to 3 percent by 2030.

Read the full article about migrant remittances in developing countries at Devex International Development.