Davao City celebrates National Day of Migrant Workers on Tuesday, June 7

The City Government of Davao will be celebrating the National Day of Migrant Workers on Tuesday, June 7, 2022, as a homage to all Overseas Filipino Workers all over the world. The city will also utilize the event to further champion the plight of migrant workers and raise public consciousness of the social assistance programs available for Dabawenyo OFWs and their families.

During the Kapihan Media Forum held at the NCCC Mall VP on Friday, Davao City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) OFW Coordinator Rosevic Joey Jayme said that social assistance and development programs for OFWs and their kin through the OFW Family Welfare and Crisis Center continue to be offered.

“Lahat naman ng mga OFWs, documented or undocumented, magbibigay kami ng assistance sa kanila lalo na sa pag-protect ng kanilang rights. Sa family nila dito sa Davao, maka-avail din sila ng mga social services. For example, kadtong atong mga financial assistance, livelihood assistance, and of course ang atong capability building activities sa ilaha na ma-empower sila. Og kadtong ginaraise pud sa atong mga OFWs na unta pag-uli nila sa Pilipinas, ang ilahang mga pamilya will not be fully dependent gihapon sa ilaha (All OFWs, documented or undocumented, we give them assistance, especially when it comes to protecting their rights. Their families here in Davao can also avail of these social services. They can avail of, for example, financial assistance, livelihood assistance, and of course our activity building activities for them to be empowered. Also, the issue raised by our OFWs on their hope that when they come home, their families will no longer be fully dependent on them),” Jayme said.

Aside from this, the Department of Social Welfare and Development Region XI (DSWD-XI), through the International Social Services Office (ISSO), announced its efforts to support and provide social services and development programs for OFWs and the families they left behind continue.

In an interview during the Madayaw Davao Program aired through the Davao City Disaster Radio Friday, ISSO-XI Focal Person Fretzie Ann Ellyn Flores said that their office provides counseling services such as psychosocial first aid, psychosocial services and marital crisis counseling. DSWD-XI also provides medical and burial cash assistance for OFWs and their families.

Local NGOs, such as the Mindanao Migrants Center for Empowering Actions, Inc. (MMCEAI), are also anticipating the event, viewing it as a symbolic recognition of our “bagong bayani” (new heroes).

MMCEAI Executive Director Inorisa Elento said, “Dako kaayo atong pagtan-aw sa June 7 isip usa ka selebrasyon, pagpasalamat sa atong mga OFWs tungod kay diri to nagsugod gyud ang pagpanday sa atoang Republic Act 8042 … nga mao pu’y gitungtongan ‘sab sa eventually sa paghisgot sa atoang RA No. 11641 or kaning Department of Migrant Workers (For us from the civil society organizations, we give much importance to June 7 as a form of celebrating, thanking our OFWs because this is where we started crafting our Republic Act No. 8042 … which eventually became the foundation for our RA No. 11641 or the Department of Migrant Workers).”

In celebration of the said event, the OFW Family Welfare and Crisis Center announced that they will be conducting an OFW Left-Behind Families Virtual Forum on June 7, between 8:00 a.m. to 12 noon. The forum will be held in a hybrid modality with stakeholders of the forum—including affiliates from the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), the OFW Foreign Workers Counseling Center (OFW-FWCC), and the CSWDO—gathering at the Sangguniang Panlungsod. Meanwhile, participating OFWs and their left-behind families will be joining the forum via Zoom. CIO