OVERSEAS Filipino workers (OFWs), dubbed the country's modern day heroes, were among the sectors hardest hit by the Covid-19 pandemic four years ago.
Remittances from OFWs stimulate consumer spending, increasing gross domestic product ( GDP).
A Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) report on March 7, 2022 said in 2019, the total number of OFWs was 2.18 million — 2.11 million of whom were overseas contract workers (OCWs) and about 69,000 were under longer employment agreements with working visas and work permits.
OCWs decreased from 2.11 million in 2019 to 1.71 million in 2020.
Total remittances in 2020 amounted to P134.77 billion, significantly lower than the P210.40 billion recorded in 2019.
About 83 percent, or 664,000 of the estimated 800,000 OFWs displaced by the pandemic, went jobless for at least three months, following their arrival in the country.
A recent report by the United Nations International Organization Migration (IOM) said the pandemic resulted in a 75-percent reduction in deployment of OFWs in 2020, the lowest in over three decades.
Data from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) during a Senate budget hearing showed that the number of deployed OFWs in 2020 was 1,394,788, considerably lower than the 2 million recorded in 2019.
Improvements were seen in 2022 as the effects of the pandemic began to wane.
The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said new bilateral labor agreements post-pandemic resulted in overseas employment opportunities for over 2 million Filipinos.
Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said increased overseas deployment was evident in the 2.53 million overseas employment certificates (OEC) issued in 2023, an increase of 17 percent compared to 2022.
The POEA, an adjunct agency of the DMW, issued an OEC, which serves as an exit clearance for OFWs.
Cacdac said remarkable improvement in OFWs deployment was recorded this year, particularly for the maritime industry.
"We are projecting there will be an improved economic climate for 2024. Last year, there were modest targets. But, this year, we are expecting more," he added.
Migrant Worker Undersecretary Patrica Caunan said among the potential new markets for OFWs were Croatia, the Czech Republic and Hungary, adding the DMW has more than 30 pending agreements and memoranda of understanding with 25 other countries.
The DMW said OFW cash remittances reached $40 billion in 2023, compared to P32 billion in 2022, due to the sustained expansion of host countries.
OFWs in the United States were the biggest source of remittances last year, accounting for 40.9 percent, followed by Singapore (7.1 percent), Saudi Arabia (6.2 percent), Japan (5 percent), the UK (4.7 percent), the UAE (4.3 percent), Canada (3.6 percent), Qatar (2.8 percent), Taiwan (2.7 percent) and South Korea (2.5 percent).
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) records showed that from January to May, OFWs remittances reached $14.89 billion, a 3 percent increase from the same period last year.
The largest chunk came from the United States, representing 40.9 percent of remittances for the said period.
The BSP said OFW remittances bolster economic activities, providing a stable source for the country's foreign currency reserves.
In 2023, full-year remittances from OFWs reached an all-time high of $37 billion. The BSP said it accounted for 8.5 percent of the Philippines' GDP and 7.7 percent of gross national income.
OFWs' sustained cash remittances have been instrumental in the overall development of the nation; it is an engine of growth.
Post-pandemic, among the factors that could affect remittances from OFWs were fluctuations in currency exchange rates and regional conflicts, particularly in high-deployment areas such as the Middle East.
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