Sunday, January 07, 2007 Overseas Pinoy workers’ remittances to continue to prop up RP economy: lawmaker
SENATE President Manuel Villar said as in previous years, the dollar remittances of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) would still keep the country’s economy afloat this year.
“Remittances from OFWs last year exceeded targets. It was reported that it reached US$12 billion, way above earlier forecast of around US$10.3 billion. This upward trend will likely continue this year, so Pinoys overseas will again be the saving grace of the Philippine economy,” he said.
“There is no denying that OFWs are not only major players or contributors to the country’s economy. They have also, over the years, altered the social landscape in our country. Filipino families living on remittances of their relatives abroad continue to increase,” he said.
Based on National Statistics Office (NSO) data, the number of families relying on money from abroad as the main source of income has increased from 775,000 families in 1991 to 1.3 million in 2003, representing a 69 percent growth rate. Eighty percent of Filipino families survive on OFW remittances.
Other sectors said the country’s reliance on OFW remittances will not be healthy for the economy. Likewise, it was pointed out by a labor expert that even the OFWs’ families who receive money tend to indulge themselves and spend the OFWs’ hard-earned money on luxury items.
Villar, on the other hand, urged OFWs and their families to invest their hard-earned money in the country since it was estimated that 20 to 30 percent of OFW income is remitted here.
Nonetheless, according to Villar, through their remittances and investments, OFWs are already a major contributor to the local economy. In fact, OFW remittances account for around 1/12th of the country’s gross national product (GNP). Remittances contribute to consumer spending, which accounts for around 70 percent of the GDP.
“OFWs continue to do our country a huge favor through their dollar remittances, which continue to be the saving grace of our economy. If not for their remittances, our economy would be adversely affected,” added Villar. (CPB/Sunnex)
