By Morris Aron and Reuters

Remittances from the Diaspora fell by five per cent last month as the effects of the global recession began to reflect on earnings and investment patterns of Kenyans working abroad.

The amount of money sent home by Kenyans living abroad slipped to $53.35 million (Sh4 billion) in September from $55.95 million (Sh4.2 billion) in August — the highest for any month this year, according to statistics from Central Bank.

Though a drop compared to the previous month, the level of remittances is still higher compared a similar month the last year where it stood at US$ 48,953.

CBK data indicated that remittances from North America and Europe rose in September compared to the previous month but the contribution from rest of the world slipped to $10.2 million from $17.2 million in August.

Total remittances in the first nine months of this year stood at $456 million, down slightly from $466 million in the same period last year, but up from $430 million in January-September 2007.

The CBK statistics indicate that more than half of remittances have come from North America in each of the past five years, a fact that has been instrumental in formulating policies to counter the effects of the global credit crunch.

"The stabilisation in remittance flows in the second quarter of this year may in part reflect the bottoming up of the global economic recession as a result of coordinated intervention by policy makers," CBK report indicates.

The reports come at a time when human resources experts are witnessing a brain gain trend with the number of Kenyans looking for job opportunities has risen since the global credit crunch started.

There is also an emerging trend where individuals are sending more money for safer investment alternatives available in the country by liquidating assets they own in the Diaspora. According to a Human Resource report that is due for launch next week by PriceWaterhouseCoppers, more Kenyans are looking for both jobs and safer investment opportunities back home.

"For a while now many have been complaining of brain drain, now we are seeing a brain gain," said Kuria Muchiru a partner with PWC who specialises in human capital.