Even before the COVID-19
pandemic, we knew of the bittersweet stories of returning Overseas Filipino Workers
(OFWs). Often, they go abroad for high-paying jobs so that they can save and
send money to their families back home. But migration stories don’t always guarantee
a happy ending, and they need help when they are forced to return home.
“Dahil ang
pagkakaakala ko ay ang pagiging OFW ang
sagot sa lahat ng naging problemang financial namin at gusto kong
maiahon ang aking pamilya at mapagtapos ang aking anak,” said returning OFW
Marites Coronado. The
journey, however, wasn’t simple.
Take the case of another former
OFW, Alma Palafox. She recounted: “Hindi po ako sini-suwerte sa napupuntahan
na bansa. Laging may masamang nangyayari po sa akin. At minsan na rin muntik na
akong hindi nakabalik ng Pinas ng buhay. Kaya hindi ko po natatapos kontrata
ko.”
Gerlie Austria shares a similar experience
but remains grateful despite the hardships she endured abroad. “Hindi man po
ako naging maswerte sa ibang bansa, pero nagpapasalamat po ako sa Panginoong Diyos
at ako po ay nakauwi nang buhay.”
Myrna Peñosa Corporal
recalled the gloom she felt when she decided to go back to her family. “Noong
nagsabi ako sa amo ko na ibalik na ako sa agency, dinala po nila ako sa Labor.
Ang unang pumasok sa isip ko at naiyak ako, ‘Paano na ang pamilya ko? Uuwi
ako na walang pera at naipon’,” said Corporal.
Coronado, Palafox, Austria, and Corporal are
among the OFWs who had to return home even if they haven’t achieved yet the
financial goals they set for themselves.
The Balikabayanihan campaign, a program supported by the Bank
of the Philippine Islands (BPI), seeks to help these OFWs whose dreams were
interrupted for various reasons.
Spearheaded by NEDA-Philippine National
Volunteer Service Coordinating Agency and Atikha — a non-government
organization working with OFWs and their families to maximize the gains of
working abroad — Balikabayanihan calls on the spirit of volunteerism of
Filipinos to help returning OFWs.
It is a call for partnership by the Overseas
Filipino organizations with government agencies, local government units, and
the private sector to help OFWs by providing the needed resources — manpower
and funds or mobilizing their volunteer network to serve as mentors to the
OFWs.
Melanie Labera,
a returning OFW whose plan to resume her work abroad was put on hold because of
the COVID-19 pandemic, benefitted from the program. “Nang umuwi ako ng
Pilipinas, nagkataon naman na pandemic. Gusto ko sana bumalik [abroad], pero di
na ako makabalik. Kaya malaki ang pasasalamat ko sa programang ito, pati sa
BPI. May konting puhunan naman ako sa aking tindahan, pero konti lang. Kaya nagpapasalamat
ako na nadagdagan dahil sa inyo.”
For her part,
Austria, also a program beneficiary, said, “Nang makabalik po ako sa Pilipinas,
isa po ako sa maswerteng napili ng Atikha na mabigyan ng tulong upang ako’y
makapagsimula ulit sa aking buhay. Naging masaya po ako at nagkaroon ng pag-asa
sa buhay. Ngayon po ay natupad ang isa kong pangarap na makabili ng makina.”
Financial
empowerment
As one of the program supporters,
BPI aims to empower repatriated
OFWs by helping them manage their finances through learning webinars and by
mobilizing volunteers and sponsors. BPI implements their programs through its
business units BPI Foundation, BPI-Philam, and Remittance and Fund
Transfers.
“This pandemic has
been hard on everyone, but repatriated OFWs and their families have been
particularly affected. OFWs have done so much to uplift our entire nation’s
economy over the decades. It’s only right that we stand by them now and help
them get back on their feet and establish a financially secure life for
themselves and their families,” said Reggie Cariaso, BPI Head of Corporate
Banking Strategy, Products, and Support.
“Napakaganda po
ng aking karanasan dahil nagkaroon po ako ng pag-asa sa buhay at talagang
ipinangako ko po sa aking sarili na pagbubutihin ko po itong tulong na ibinigay
sa akin ng Atikha at BPI Pamana Padala. At ang nagustuhan ko po dito ay
ang mga taong kasapi dito na maaayos ang pakikitungo at napakamapagkumbaba at
napakababait upang matulungan kaming lahat,” said Coronado.
BPI Foundation
holds mentoring sessions for OFWs with BPI Unibankers as volunteer mentors. For
its part, BPI Philam provides free COVID-19 insurance coverage worth P200,000.
BPI’s Remittance and Fund Transfers offers financial grants and monthly mentoring
sessions for chosen OFWs and instills the value of
saving using their BPI Pamana Padala account.
With opportunities such as the Balikabayanihan, returning
OFWs are more empowered than ever to try their luck in their home country.
Palafox said, “Dito nalang po ako sa Pinas. Kahit mahirap po basta’t sama-sama kami
ng mga anak ko. Kaya nagpapasalamat kami sa Balikabayanihan at sa BPI. Ang tanging hinahangad ko po sa aking sarili ay mapaunlad ko ang munting
negosyo at magkaroon pa ng maraming kaalaman.”
Corporal
shared another insight: “Natutunan ko po
sa Balikabayanihan na kailangan po tayong magtulungan
para makabangon ulit sa hamon ng buhay.”
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