Visa, UnionBank tie up for money transfer business

Philippine Daily Inquirer  
1:09 am | Friday, June 10th, 2011 

Global credit card company Visa Inc. has entered the local remittance market with the launch of a new service that allows Filipinos in the Middle East to send money directly to their loved ones’ credit cards in the country.

In a briefing earlier this week, the company announced its new partnership with UnionBank of the Philippines for a new service that lets users receive cash from abroad to their Visa debit cards—the first of its kind in Asia.

The service, which uses Visa’s Personal Payment technology, was developed in partnership with United Arab Emirates (UAE) Exchange, a leading provider of remittance services in the Middle East.

“(This) will be the first remitter to offer the service to the Philippines, with other key markets for Filipinos working overseas added in the coming months,” it said in a statement.
It said the new service would give “millions of cardholders a faster and more convenient way to receive everyday remittances.”

Dubbed as Visa Personal Payments, the new service would allow Filipinos with local Visa debit cards, issued by UnionBank, to receive funds in near real time, putting money from thousands of miles away in recipients’ hands in a matter of minutes. The cash is sent by overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) through UAE Exchange branches abroad.

The cash can then be withdrawn at the nearest automated teller machines (ATM) or used to pay for services such as bill settlements or even grocery purchases.

“Adding a remittance feature to Visa cards makes a lot of sense as the Philippines is one of the most sophisticated remittance markets,” Visa Philippines country manager Iain Jamieson said.

About eight million Filipinos currently work abroad, remitting a total of $18.8 billion to their families in the Philippines every year based on 2010 figures from the central bank.

“Visa cards offer the best way to make purchases and withdraw cash, and they are now the best way to receive overseas remittances as well,” he said.—Paolo G. Montecillo

DOLE to hold first congress on OFWs

By OWWA Home
Updated June 03, 2011 11:12 AM

 

The Dept. of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and its attached agencies will be celebrating its 1^st NATIONAL CONGRESS OF OFWs AND FAMILIES on June 7, Tuesday at the SMX Convention Center, Mall of Asia, Pasay City. This momentous event falls on Migrant Workers Day, the special day made for the Filipino overseas workers.

The National Congress of OFWs and Families aims to convene OFWs and families, and other stakeholders to draw up recommendations for program development and policy direction in fostering OFW sector development, and to develop a mechanism in the implementation of the billion-peso reintegration program for enterprise development of OFWs.

The event’s highlight will be the launching of the 2 Billion Pesos Reintegration Program. This is a joint venture of the DOLE, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), Land Bank of the Philippines and the Development Bank of the Philippines. The program offers different enterprises, flexible and easy loan term payments for its OFW availees. This is in support of the president’s desire to give sustainable businesses to the OFWs and their families.   

The event will also showcase exhibits of products and services of former OFWs and Overseas Filipino Circles (OFCs) who have previously availed of the reintegration programs and financial and technical assistances offered by the OWWA.

The event will also feature the presentation of the OFW Manifesto which underscores the needs and concerns of the OFWs and their families. The Manifesto was drafted from the accumulated reports of the Regional Congress of the OWWA Regional Welfare Offices.
The attendees of the event are the OFWs, their families, the OFCs, the social partners, the media and some distinguished guests.

OWWA organized this event in celebration of the national Migrant Workers Day. 

State agencies ink deal to help OFWs

Executive officers of Landbank of the Philippines and the Development Bank of the Philippine with DOLE Usec. Danilo P. Cruz and OWWA Administrator Carmelita S. Dimzon on the signing of the 2 Billion Pesos Reintegration Program MOU signing- by OWWA

Home Updated June 03, 2011 11:23 AM

The 2 Billion Pesos OFWs (Overseas Filipino Workers) Reintegration Program was formally set as state agencies including the Department of Labor and Employment, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), National Reintegration Center for OFWs, Landbank of the Philippines (LBP) and the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) inked a memorandum of understanding on May 30 at the OWWA headquarters.

This significant event was attended by the top executive officers of all the named agencies. The reintegration program was in direct compliance to Pres. Benigno Aquino’s directive on giving sustainable enterprise opportunities to the OFWs and their families to have working abroad be more of a choice rather than a necessity.    

The two government banks, LBP and DBP, will be the direct lending institutions and will implement this program nationwide in partnership with other government agencies and tapped private sectors.

The loanable amount may start at P300,000 and can go as high as P2 million. A 7.5% interest per annum applies with up to a maximum of seven-year term payment subject to loan project. Agribusiness, tourism, education and healthcare for the regions are only some of the more favored businesses the reintegration program will support.   

The initial recipients from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao of the OFWs Reintegration Program will be awarded their cheques on the 1^st National Congress of OFWs and Families on June 7 at the SMX Convention Center, Pasay City.

“All the agencies involved will certainly work together to ensure committed service and immediate effectivity of this project for our OFWs and their families,” OWWA Administrator Carmelita Dimzon said.

Is it really poverty that drives Filipinos overseas?

By Susan K
Philippine Daily Inquirer  
3:49 am | Sunday, June 5th, 2011 

Are overseas Filipino workers (OFW) being driven out of the country by poverty? Or is it just the latest opportunity and trend?

Over the years, poverty has been the common reason cited for the exodus of Filipinos out of the country: to “find work and sustain their needs as well as that of their families.”

Is this true? In recent years quite a number of studies have thrown more light on the matter.

Dr. Clement Camposano, a senior instructor and migration anthropologist from the University of Asia and the Pacific, said studies have shown that “although many countries are experiencing destitution, poverty is merely one of the factors and not the root cause of Filipino migration.”

He said that based on studies, those who work abroad are not all poor, or at least not the poorest of the poor. It takes a lot of money to prepare for overseas work.

Many OFWs are duped into forking over huge sums of money by recruiters. Many reach foreign lands heavily in debt.

In a way, OFWs are gamblers and risk-takers. They are drawn by the huge wage differential between local and foreign paychecks. They invest heavily to leave the country. They secure monies for placement and other processing fees to realize their dreams. They don’t give up easily, even though, at times, they fall prey to some illegal recruiters.

With all the monies that are tossed and spun in the process of migration, can we really say that our kababayan who search for so-called “greener pastures” are really the underprivileged?

Take the case of OFW Feliza Ibamit from Victoria, Laguna who appealed for help from Bantay OCW on August 18, 2010. She paid P270,000 as placement fee to recruiter Maria Novie Belludo who promised her employment in Italy. She waited for three years but was not deployed. After losing so much time following up her overseas placement, she sought assistance from Bantay OCW to get back her money.

Bantay OCW coordinated with the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG). It was reported that Beludo was in Rome at that time. Ibamit then filed a case against Beludo at the Regional Trial Court in Victoria, Laguna.
After a series of hearings, Belludo’s sister, Maria Role Belludo, returned the full amount to Ibamit last December 23, 2010.

Regrettably, Ibamit signed a quit claim to withdraw any further case against the illegal recruiter and her sister.

Last March 5, 2011, Ibamit visited Radyo Inquirer to personally express her gratefulness to the program for the return of her money. She said she would use the money instead to support the education of her nieces and nephews.

According to Dr. Camposano, “whether we accept it or not, migration is innate to human beings… who are influenced by various cultures and their yearnings to discover those cultures by themselves.” Filipinos are preferred by many foreign employers. Aside from their diligence and passion for work, they have good fluency in both written and spoken English language.

Poverty is not the ultimate reason why they become OFWs. Going abroad is a personal decision. No one can force anyone to work abroad if there is no desire to do so.

Sad to say, some of our kababayan depart from the country although they are unskilled and ill-prepared. Some end up feeding themselves to the (loan) sharks, burying themselves in debt, drowning themselves in miseries, and living with loneliness.

Not all OFWs are driven by poverty. Some just want to be part of the latest trend. We all need to be better informed of the real situation abroad and what it really takes to benefit most from the OFW experience.