Country Report for the Philippines
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The opinions expressed in the report are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout the report do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IOM concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning its frontiers or boundaries. IOM is committed to the principle that humane and orderly migration benefits migrants and society. As an intergovernmental organization, IOM acts with its partners in the international community to: assist in meeting the operational challenges of migration; advance understanding of migration issues; encourage social and economic development through migration; and uphold the human dignity and well-being of migrants. Publishers: International Organization for Migration 28/F Citibank Tower 8741 Paseo de Roxas Makati City, Philippines Tel: +63.2.230 19 99 Fax: +63.2.848 12 57 E-mail: [email protected] Internet: http://www.iom.int Scalabrini Migration Center #40 Matapat Street Barangay Pinyahan Quezon City, Philippines Tel: +63.2.436 79 15 Fax: +63.2.436 76 92 E-mail: [email protected] Internet: http://www.smc.org.ph © 2013 International Organization for Migration (IOM) All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior written permission of the publisher. This publication has not undergone professional editing by IOM. Implemented by the Scalabrini Migration Center With the International Organization for Migration In partnership with the Government of the Philippines FOREWORD Country Migration Report A published by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is a comprehensive roadmap for policymakers to help ensure that migration is for the benefit of all. Country Migration Report: The Philippines (CMR), The Philippines’ first Migration Profile, entitled was produced under the IOM’s initiative, Migration Profile Development Project for the Philippines. Written by the Scalabrini Migration Center (SMC), the CMR provides a comprehensive evidence- based account of the country’s migration experience in a single, concise document to serve as a tool for policy-making. Thus, it is an invaluable tool for those responsible for shaping the policies of the country whose overseas workers are a powerhouse for economic growth, both at home and abroad. The CMR project was initiated by IOM in response to the Philippine Government’s interest, which immediately emerged after the 2011 Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD) conference on Migration Profiles. This conference was co-chaired by the Philippines with Switzerland in Manila, to take stock of the country’s international migration experience and to harmonize migration data management system within a shared framework. The CMR was prepared in cooperation with Scalabrini Migration Center with support from the IOM Development Fund and implemented with its key partners: the Commission on Filipino Overseas, the Department of Labor and Employment, and the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration. In addition to summarizing readily available migration data sets and statistics, the CMR aims to identify and analyze the challenges and critical areas surrounding migration data management. In the process, the CMR seeks to help narrow existing gaps by bringing to light stakeholder observations of the Philippines’ current migration experience. Furthermore, the CMR aims to emphasize the connection between migration and development and its significance in the country’s migration governance framework. The CMR resulted from a series of consultations, which included technical working group meetings, meetings of six thematic clusters, national workshops and conferences and numerous one-on-one institutional meetings involving more than 30 government agencies, civil society organizations and private sector representatives over a period of nearly 20 months. These consultations discussed and collated a comprehensive collection of migration data sets, analysis of gaps and challenges and citations of a number of recommendations. The SMC, applying inputs from previous consultations, COUNTRY MIGRATION REPORT: iii THE PHILIPPINES desk researches and review of existing literature, produced the preliminary draft of the report following the National Conference on International Migration Data and the High-Level Round Table Discussion on Migration Policies. A Validation Workshop followed where government and non-government partners shared their inputs on how to improve the initial draft. The CMR supports the thrust of the Philippine government in organizing its database on migration as a reference to informed policy, mainstreaming migration gains into national and local development, improvement of service programming, a systematic approach to crises management, facilitation of bilateral negotiations and regional cooperation as well as the institution of results monitoring mechanisms. Additionally, since the CMR provided an opportunity for stakeholders to clarify data concepts and data capture systems, areas for future development cooperation has been identified and put forward. The process of developing the CMR provided the platform in building cooperative linkages among stakeholders in the hopes of harmonizing information sharing systems. The process by which the CMR project was implemented facilitated essential mapping and consultative exercises which IOM hopes will continue among the different government agencies and other stakeholders even beyond the project. MARCO BOASSO Chief of Mission, IOM Philippines iv COUNTRY MIGRATION REPORT: THE PHILIPPINES MESSAGE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT Republic of the Philippines Intramuros, Manila Country Migration Report: The Philippines I congratulate the International Organization for Migration for coming up with the to provide global publics a comprehensive overview of migration to and from the Philippines. Through the years, the DOLE and its attached agencies have been working actively with the IOM through various collaborative programs and policies towards improved trends and quality impact to laborCountry migration. Migration Report The reflects a number of significant developments and accomplishments of the Philippine governemnt in response to the various social and welfare needs of the Filipino migrant workers who are highly-regarded and much-sought in many parts of the world. By coming out with this report, the IOM once again shows that its initiative is congruent to the vision of the DOLE of upholding the protection and increasing the employability and productivity of our migrant workers and at the same time tightening the ties that bind industries together, one of the results of which is that many OFWs and their families now live better lives as the government has madeCountry its presenceMigration felt Report in many ways valuable to its migrant workers. The serves many purposes. It paints a clear picture of the OFW ‘diaspora.’ It bares many of the real issues migrants face. And it takes a significant step forward in highlighting areas of study in the field of migration governance that need to be analyzed to improve the institutional and policy framework on international migration for the benefit of our migrant workers, their foreign employers, and our government. As a guide and reference, this commendable study undoubtely will provide a necessary boost to deeper understanding of the realm of overseas employment that has long been in the forefront of the country’s economic development, making more Filipinos as empowered economic movers, both local and abroad. We at the DOLE are grateful to the men and women of the IOM who are behind this valuable publication, even as we look forward to a stronger partnership with you, all for the greater welfare of our migrant workers. Congratulations! ROSALINDA DIMAPILIS-BALDOZ Secretary COUNTRY MIGRATION REPORT: v THE PHILIPPINES MESSAGE COMMISSION ON FILIPINOS OVERSEAS Office of the President of the Philippines Mabuhay to the International Organization for Migration and to the Scalabrini Migration Center, overseas! our invaluable and ever-reliable partners in responding to the challenges of migration for Filipinos international migration comes midway through the term of President Benigno S. Aquino III. In his It is timely that the publication of the first ever comprehensive overview of the Philippines’ social contract with the Filipino people, President Aquino committed to giving us a government that would strive to create jobs here at home, “so that working abroad will be a choice rather than a necessity.” He decried the previous policy that treated Filipinos as an export commodity and a means to earn foreign exchange, while disregarding the social cost to the migrants themselves, their families, their communities and the country. Thus the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) of the Aquino administration 2011 to 2016 has 60 migration-related passages in 7 of its 9 chapters. The findings in this Report on Philippine Migration will surely have a significant bearing on the ongoing 2013 mid-term review of the PDP. Country Migration Report: The Philippines will be another essential tool in the formation of policies and practices for Philippine government agencies and other stakeholders to This IOM-SMC promote