SENATE Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano on Tuesday expressed support for a measure seeking to ensure the proper reintegration of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) returning to the country for good, emphasizing the need to implement this through stronger interagency cooperation.
“Let me express support for the bill. It’s a very good bill; we need it,” Cayetano said of the Bagong Balikbayan Act (Senate Bill No. 2423 under Committee Report No. 80) sponsored by Senator Raffy Tulfo.
The measure seeks to establish a comprehensive, integrated, and sustainable reintegration program for OFWs, covering their needs before, during, and after their overseas employment.
Cayetano is regarded as the father of the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) for his legislative efforts as House Speaker and as principal author of the measure that created the department.
He also served as Foreign Affairs Secretary and personally looked after OFWs from 2017 to 2018, during which he personally handled and looked after their concerns.
“I’d like to support the provision na nilagay about interagency (cooperation),” he said, underscoring the need for agencies like the DMW, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE, and other agencies to work together to ensure that the bill’s programs translate into meaningful assistance for returning OFWs.
Cayetano noted that the objectives of the Bagong Balikbayan Act are closely aligned with the original intent behind the creation of the DMW: to develop the global Filipino, help Filipinos access better opportunities abroad, and prepare for the needs of future generations of migrant workers.
Drawing from his experience in OFW welfare and protection, Cayetano has consistently emphasized the need for stronger and more coordinated government measures to protect migrant workers and support them throughout the migration cycle.
“I’m excited to discuss this at the proper time and to ask the departments how they will not only help this bill and coordinate to make sure that this bill translates to success for OFWs,” he said.
In supporting the bill, he also urged Tulfo to consider the mandatory review of the creation of the DMW in the passage of this measure.
“By next year, up for mandatory review na y’ung batas ng DMW. I really hope we pass this bill, but I hope we can review it side-by-side with how the Department of Migrant Workers can be more effective,” he said.
Comprehensive reintegration support
The Bagong Balikbayan Act mainly addresses the limited programs and initiatives available for returning OFWs, with the goal of establishing a comprehensive, sustainable, and full-cycle reintegration program that addresses the economic, social, and psychosocial needs of OFWs before their return, during their overseas employment, and upon arrival in the Philippines.
The reintegration program shall be customized to the needs and skills of OFWs and mainstreamed through the migration cycle, while promoting access to local employment, entrepreneurship, agriculture, fisheries, aquaculture, and other livelihood opportunities.
Financial literacy programs shall also be developed to help OFWs attain economic self-sufficiency, social stability, and psychosocial well-being for themselves and their families.
The bill strengthens the role of the DMW, through the National Reintegration Center for OFWs (NRCO) as the lead agency, and creates a National Reintegration Network for integrated service delivery.
It shall also institutionalize digital systems for job matching, skills recognition, training, entrepreneurship support, and access to financing.
The measure seeks to cover all returning OFWs, irrespective of their typology or status, including land-based or sea-based OFWs, documented or undocumented OFWs, those who have been voluntarily or mandatorily repatriated regardless of grounds for repatriation, and OFWs returning to the country due to distressing circumstances in their host countries.
Once passed into law, the funding to implement the Bagong Balikbayan Act shall be charged against the DMW’s current year budget along with agencies concerned, and thereafter shall be included in the General Appropriations Act.
