Pangasinan: Top 5 in most no. of OFWs

            LINGAYEN --- Pangasinan remains as top province in Region 1, ranking fifth among the country’s leading provinces with the highest number of overseas Filipino workers as of year 2012.

            In a report to the Pangasinan Migration and Development Council meeting held recently, Andrea Luisa C. Anolin, a representative of the Commission of Filipinos Overseas (CFO) , said that more than 175,000 registered overseas Filipino workers including migrants are from Pangasinan.

            She added that the province posted a share of P7.34B from the P11.4B total remittances of Region 1 for the period of April to September 2006.

            On top of the remittances, Anolin noted the support of the Pangasinan’s  overseas workers to the CFO’s Lingkod sa Kapamilya (LINKAPIL) or Link for Philippine Development, a program aimed at  forging deeper partnership between expatriates and Filipinos in the home country.

            According to a report, the Filipino overseas of Pangasinan has contributed P146 million to their home province in the forms of donations and projects which include medical missions, infrastructure, scholarship, livelihood and holding of skills transfer seminar.

            Taking cognizance of the contributions of PAngasinan to the country’s economy, Anolin said the CFO has put up three satellite offices in Pangasinan, particularly in Dagupan City, Urdaneta City and Rosales town to cater to the needs of the overseas workers.

            As member of the PMDC, the CFO vowed to help the provincial government in the campaign against anti-illegal recruitment and human trafficking activities as well as in the formulation of plans and programs for the welfare of OFWs and their families.

            Anolin assured PMDC’s assistance in encouraging the families of overseas workers and migrants to invest part of the remittance into productive livelihood programs in their communities.

            “If we really want to resonate that Pangasinan is the best place to invest, to work and raise a family, let us start it with our Filipino overseas by convincing them to invest in their home province,” she said. (Mer/pio)