RIYADH: Global remittances are set to reach a record level in 2021, fueled by a significant increase in transfers to Latin America and migrants headed for the US, according to forecasts from the World Bank. Remittances to low and middle-income countries are projected to grow 7.3 percent this year from 2020, the Washington-based development lender said in a report Wednesday. Transfers to Latin America and the Caribbean are forecast to have soared 21.6 percent, spurred by factors including concern about Covid-19, hurricanes, improvement in the American economy and a jump in the number of migrants traveling to the US. Other main drivers include recovery in employment levels and fiscal and social assistance programs in hosting countries, particularly the US, the World Bank said. Remittances likely increased 9.7 percent for the Middle East and North Africa, 8 percent for South Asia, 6.2 percent for sub-Saharan Africa and 5.3 percent for Europe and Central Asia. In East Asia and the Pacific, remittances are estimated to have fallen by 4 percent. The global increase is bigger than the 2.6 percent that the World Bank forecast in May after a drop of 1.6 percent in 2020 — far less than the 20 percent tumble originally predicted, according to Bloomberg. In 2022, remittances are expected to grow at 4.4 percent, mainly due to a weaker growth outlook for the US, according to the report.