Migration's benefits don't go down to the poor?

Economic benefits of international labor migration "have not trickled down to the poor
and less developed regions in the country."

In sharp contrast, Go added, the regions in Mindanao, which have high levels of poverty
incidence, have the lowest proportion of OFWs. These include the conflict-ridden
Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (the poorest region where the smallest
proportion of migrant workers come from), Central Mindanao (region 12), Southern
Mindanao (region 11), Northern Mindanao (region 10), and Western Mindanao (region
9).

Poverty incidence versus number of OFWs per region

The National Capital Region, according to the 1997 FIES, has 6.4 percent of its residents
at or below the poverty threshold, and contributes 19.1 percent of the country's total
OFWs.

Impacts on OFW, family, community vary accordingly

Urban families benefit more from migration than rural families

'The most disquieting aspect of international labor migration'

 Table 1: Remittance figures (from Go, 2002; Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas)
January to July

1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2001

Total (in US$

5,741,835 7,367,989 6,794,550 6,050,450 6,031,271 4,263,594 3,416,044
million)
Land-based (in
5,484,223 7,093,440 5,948,341 5,123,773 4,937,922 3,560,995 2,804,910
US$ million)
Sea-based (in
257,612 274,549 846,209 926,677 1,093,349 702,599 611,134
US$ million)
Remittances as %
22.8 16.7 19.4 Not Not
of Export
percent percent percent available available
Earnings 1
Remittances as %
6.6 7.1 8.7 Not Not
of Gross National
percent percent percent available available
Product (GNP) 2

Remittances/OFW $7,679.4 $8,859.6 $8,117.5 $7,189.0 $7,194.7

(US$)Total

Land-based $9,806.8 $11,112.3 $9,289.5 $7,964.8 $7,770.9

Sea-based $1,366.9 $1,420.3 $4,302.3 $4,672.5 $5,334.5

1 - From 1990 to 1999, the percentage of remittances to export earnings is 20.3 percent
2 - From 1990 to 1999, the percentage of remittances to GNP is 5.2 percent

Table 2: 1997 Distribution of OFWs and Poverty Incidence of Families by Region (Go, 2002)
% Distribution of Poverty Incidence of Families
Island Group / Region Rank Rank
OFWs (%)

Philippines 100.00 31.8

National Capital Region 19.1 1 6.4 15

Luzon 53.2 30.1
* Cordillera Autonomous Region 2.0 12 42.5 5
* Region 1: Ilocos 12.6 3 37.8 10
* Region 2: Cagayan Valley 5.0 6 32.1 12
* Region 3: Central Luzon 12.0 4 15.4 14
* Region 4: Southern Tagalog 18.9 2 25.7 13
* Region 5: Bicol 2.7 9 50.1 2
Visayas 15.4 38.2
* Region 6: Western Visayas 9.4 5 39.9 8
* Region 7: Central Visayas 4.2 7 34.4 11
* Region 8: Eastern Visayas 1.8 14 40.8 6
Mindanao 12.3 44.6
* Region 9: Western Mindanao 3.0 8 40.1 7
* Region 10: Northern Mindanao 1.3 15 47.0 4
* Region 11: Southern Mindanao 2.6 10 38.2 9
* Region 12: Central Mindanao 2.4 11 50.0 3
* Autonomous Region of Muslim
1.9 13 57.3 1
Mindanao