2012 proposed budget for OFWs (concerned agencies) Prepared by Migrante International, August 2011

Summary of new appropriations – Comparative from previous years (in thousand pesos):

DEPARTMENT 2010 2011 (adjusted) 2012 (proposed) Remarks

Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Office of the Secretary Foreign Services Institutions

9,773,960

11,101,166

10,912,081

↓

9,714,623

11,047,320

10,851,549

↓

39,651

35,189

40,870

↑

Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Office of the Secretary POEA

2,290,529

1,993,499

2,300,205

↑

317,670 311,355 309,583 ↓

Office of the President

2,405,025 2,478,248 2,695,422 ↑

Office of the Vice President

176,697 187,805 401,786 ↑

Department of Justice Office of the Secretary

2,754,691

2,609,014

3,098,473

↑

Commission on Filipinos Overseas

51,142 50,853 54,316 ↑

Contingent Fund 1,000,000 1,000,000

Unprogrammed Funds

161,690,047

Per department allocation:

1. DFA

Item Personal Services MOOE Capital Outlay

TOTAL

2011 2012 2011 2012 2011

2012

2011 2012

Reimbursement of advances made by the OWWA for emergency repatriation and other emergencies (MENA, etc) – new

90,500,000 90,500,000

appropriation

Implementation of Overseas Absentee Voting

43,414,000 43,414,000 43,414,000 43,414,000

Purchase of blank passports for e-passport

2,843,000,000

1,961,700,000

2,843,000,000

1,961,700,000

Implementation of RA 10022 (P30M for LAF) ATN?

14,260,000

12,196,000

122,220,000 192,920,000 136,480,000 205,116,000

Sub-total funds intended for direct services to OFWs

14,260,000

12,196,000

3,008,634,000

2,198,034,000

3,022,894,000

2,210,230,000

(↓)

Notes:

1. No capital outlay 2. General budget decreased (due mainly to decrease in blank passport purchase)

a. Big increase in MOOE is intended to pay off debts from OWWA b. a 2M decrease in PS for implementation of RA10022, but no increase in MOOE

3. No clear ATN allocations, while LAF is minimum of P30M. 2010’s LAF under DFA was P50M, 2011 LAF was P27M. Not clear where other funds to fulfill P100M LAF will come from (as required by RA8042).

4. Questionable: 90.5M debt incurred from OWWA – new appropriations – OWWA compensated decrease in ATN and LAF budgets for 2011? Where did this amount go? What happened to supposed budget augmentation for emergency repat in 2011 for MENA and stranded? To supposed “cash balances” – savings from Office of the Sec was 302,829 in 2010?

5. For FY 2011, DBM promised to submit an “erratum” in Congress to correct less than P100M LAF, did this push through?

6. OWWA funds disbursement? Accounting for 2010-2011 – or at least how the DFA utilized OWWA funds for its operations

2. DOLE

Item Personal Services MOOE Capital Outlay TOTAL

2011 2012 2011 2012 2011 2012 2011 2012

Emergency repatriation program

50,000,000 65,500,000 0 7,800,000 50,000,000 73,300,000

Workers’ protection and welfare services to OFWs

214,300,000

218,027,000

188,290,000

186,754,000

0 2,075,000 402,590,000

406,856,000

Reintegration Program for OFWs: Training and

50,000,000 50,400,000 0 1,364,000 50,000,000 51,764,000

education program

Verification of OEC documents

85,740,000 91,895,000 0 18,000,000

85,740,000 109,895,000

Sub-total funds intended for direct services to OFWs

214,300,000

218,027,000

374,030,000

394,549,000

0 29,239,000

588,330,000

641,815,000 (↑)

Notes:

1. Very minimal increases in emergency repat and welfare and protection and reintegration programs. How were funds for emergency repat and welfare and reintegration programs used in 2011 in light of MENA, calamities, influx of returned OFWs?

2. Main increase in capital outlay (specifics?). 3. What constitutes DOLE’s reintegration program, independent of OWWA? 4. Increase in PS for welfare and protection – increase in salaries and benefits for labor attaches? 5. No clear funds for emergency employment for OFWs. How will DOLE fund expected influx of huge number of

OFWs due to Saudization, domestic workers ban in Saudi, global debt crisis and continuing conflicts in MENA region?

6. Biggest increase in verification of documents, mainly facilitation of fees charged to pre-departure OFWs for overseas employment contract (OEC). There is also no clear accounting of profit from fees charged to OFWs.

7. Savings from DOLE from 2011 budget: NLRC – 13,100; Office of the Sec – 58,060; TESDA – 100,315 8. Re: OWWA, no accounting of utilization of OWWA funds. Where will funds for OWWA’s P2B Reintegration

Program come from?

3. POEA

Item Personal Services MOOE Capital Outlay TOTAL

Operations 2011 2012 2011 2012 2011 2012 2011 2012

Overseas employment promotion services (marketing)

31,690,000 34,861,000 15,343,000 17,844,000 47,033,000 52,705,000

Welfare assistance and overseas placement

19,475,000 21,345,000 22,593,000 21,092,000 42,068,000 42,437,000

Licensing and regulations services (including anti-illegal recruitment)

32,473,000 35,465,000 16,821,000 24,621,000 49,294,000 60,086,000

Adjudication 20,926,000 25,565,000 11,770,000 11,770,000 32,696,000 37,335,000

Sub-total funds intended for direct services to OFWs

104,564,000 117,236,000 66,527,000 75,327,000 171,091,000 192,563,000 (↑)

Notes:

1. Big increase in promotion and marketing – when PNoy’s budget framework specifically states that it will veer away from dependence on overseas employment.

2. Funds for welfare and assistance and overseas placement increased in PS, but decreased in MOOE – mainly for salaries (increase in personnel?) but not for operational expenses.

3. Big increase in licensing and regulations, including illegal recruitment program – what does this entail in terms of operations and target prosecution of perpetrators?

4. MOOE for Adjudication retained (when adjudication is directly correlated to anti-trafficking efforts). LUMP-SUM FUNDS – no clear or specific allocations

4. DOJ

Item Personal Services MOOE Capital Outlay TOTAL

2011 2012 2011 2012 2011 2012 2011 2012

Anti-Trafficking (IACAT) (Confidential and Intelligence Funds)

25,000,000 40,000,000 0 10,000,000 25,000,000

(2,000,000)

50,000,000

(10,000,000)

Sub-total funds intended for direct services to OFWs

25,000,000 40,000,000 0 10,000,000 25,000,000 50,000,000 (↑)

5. Commission on Filipinos Overseas

Item Personal Services MOOE Capital Outlay TOTAL

2011 2012 2011 2012 2011 2012 2011 2012

Welfare programs

13,309,000 15,102,000 12,715,000 13,631,000 450,000 0 26,474,000 28,733,000

Information system and strategic plan

5,477,000 8,157,000 4,595,000 4,527,000 10,072,000 12,684,000

Sub-total funds

13,309,000 15,102,000 18,192,000 21,788,000 5,045,000 4,527,000 36,546,000 41,417,000 (↑)

intended for direct services to OFWs

Notes:

1. Increase in PS, MOOE and CO – but what exactly does the CFO do? What of the CSO component on the CFO?

6. Office of the President

Item Personal Services MOOE Capital Outlay TOTAL

2011 2012 2011 2012 2011 2012 2011 2012

Overseas preparedness and response team – new appropriations

6,000,000 6,000,000

Sub-total funds intended for direct services to OFWs

6,000,000

Notes:

1. What are the core programs of the preparedness and response team led by Exec. Sec. Ochoa? 2. P1B for P2B OFW Reintegration Fund from Presidential Social Funds – not indicated 3. Allocation for LAF from President Social and Contingency Funds – not indicated

General observations: Funds for direct services to OFWs (in DFA, DOLE, POEA, DOJ, CFO, and OP budgets): 2011 – Php 3,843,861,000 2012** – Php 3,142,025,000 **Php 90.5M (in the DFA budget) are for debt payments to OWWA = Php 3,088,901,000 – Php 3,288,901,000

1. At face value, funds for services for OFWs seem to have increased per department, albeit very minimally and mostly for PS, but a closer scrutiny of the total sum of funds intended for direct services for OFWs will show that allocation for direct services for OFWs DECREASED from P3.843B to P3.142B (or by P702M)

a. Most of the increases per department were in PS, some in MOOE but not very clear if intended for services or administrative operational expenses

2. Minus the P90.5M intended for debt payments to OWWA in the DFA budget, total funds for direct services for OFWs would only amount to Php3.051B, or P792M LESS THAN the 2011 allocations for direct services to OFWs.

3. There are also no clear allocations for items such as LAF, ATN, and other welfare services 4. Proposed 2011 national budget contradicts PNoy’s framework of creating jobs at home and offering incentives

and sustainable reintegration programs for returned OFWs (i.e, increase in marketing capabilities of the POEA and very minimal increase in DOLE’s reintegration and emergency employment programs – what to make of this in light of Saudization, MENA crisis, etc?)

5. Items unclear: a. funds from OP for LAF, ATN and P2B Reintegration Program b. programs for funds allocated in the OP for overseas preparedness

c. P90.5B debt incurred by the DFA in 2011 from OWWA – where were these used? 6. Re: OWWA funds:

a. No accounting of utilization of OWWA funds in the DFA, DOLE, and other agencies b. No accounting of OWWA investments (under DOLE) c. No accounting of OWWA welfare programs (under DOLE)

7. Profits and revenue incurred by agencies that were authorized to impose fees from OFWs (DFA, DOLE, POEA) and where were they used?