Egyptian expatriates increased the money they sent home to more than US$9.75 billion during financial year 2009-2010, 39 percent more than the amount sent the year before, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Egypt's financial year runs from the beginning of July to the end of June.
Expatriate remittances come third after oil and tourism as a source of national income, Assistant Foreign Minister Mohamed Abdel Hakam said during a conference discussing the role of the transfers in domestic development.
Abdel Hakam added that the number of Egyptians working abroad ranges between six to seven million, 70 percent of whom live in the Gulf states, while 30 percent are spread among the US, Europe, Canada, and Australia.
The assistant minister explained that the largest sum of transfers came from expats in the US, who sent US$2.2 billion, followed by US$1.5 billion from Kuwait, and US$1 billion from Saudi Arabia.
Hakam said that Egypt looks forward to providing expatriates with assistance and advantages in launching projects in Egypt as a means to serve domestic development.
