LET us imagine the Philippines without its overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and assume there are no temporary and permanent migrants and millions of Filipino families do not receive any remittance from abroad.
This would mean that the 5 million to 10 million Filipinos who currently make up our OFWs (temporary, permanent and illegal migrants) are included in the country’s labor force, sharing in the roller-coaster ride of queuing in job fairs, crowding the Metro Rail Transit every morning, and joining the country’s largest-growing industry, the business-process outsourcing sector.
Their sheer number would undoubtedly expand to unimaginable proportions in the coming years—especially with more than a million newbies joining the labor force yearly. With the current severe lack of employment opportunities, Secretary General Romulo A. Virola of the National Statistical Coordination Board said there would be a high possibility that the informal sector would take up the slack, creating a thriving and robust informal economy.
But, Virola said, without the remittances, poverty would be higher than the 2009 figure of 26.5 percent encompassing 23.14 million Filipinos. It is widely known that while many OFW families are not poor, their remittances impact greatly on their lives and in the communities where they belong, through some form of assistance or employment-generating activity, like building new houses.
Director General Cayetano W. Paderanga Jr. of the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said overseas Filipino remittances used for constructing homes for their families do not only benefit these families but create employment in the community and feed its retail trade through the purchase of construction materials, new home appliances and other items.
Further, for those OFWs who are quite comfortable with their salaries, they also share their blessings with their neighbors by donating part of their hard-earned salaries to projects like the construction of churches, assistance to families in mourning and other contributions to the community.
“Our economy will not collapse without remittances but we would be faced with a difficult situation. Remittance is already a feature of the Philippine economic situation. This is why we are focusing on the right policies to help our OFWs. We really owe a lot to our kababayans who venture out,”
Paderanga said in an interview conducted over the telephone.
SATURDAY, 28 JANUARY 2012 18:44 CAI U. ORDINARIO / REPORTER
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Many Filipinos are going out of our country today. for the reason of supporting their families and hoping that their status in society would rise. Yes, these people do help our economy in our country through remittance and they might share some of their blessing to other people .
but is it really enough?
When a person works abroad, Other people may say that "You are a Filipino, so you should also work here in the philippines" or "working abroad is like being a slave to other countries." This might be true to some, but is it really enough? Filipinos might be a hard worker despite what kind of work they have been given. but their salary is not enough for the support for their family and facing the increasing amounts of our products needed in each families.
Getting all the stuffs you ever wanted before are now granted because you have the money. as to relate this situation withe the subject, every people face opportunity cost. well, these people already know what would it be, but they chose not to suffer of being poor.
one example is my mother, she works abroad and gave me a comfortable life. but we must pay the cost of it. the price of being separated for a long time.
What would be its negative costs?
Children are growing up without parents.
Marriages are placed under serious strain, sometimes leading to a breakup.
