The Commission on Filipinos Overseas Report

7/28/2019 The Commission on Filipinos Overseas Report

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PART II

The Commission on Filipinos Overseas

The Commission on Filipinos Overseas is an agency of the Philippine Government whichwas established on 16 June 1980 through the enactment of Batas Pambansa (Republic Act) 79 to

promote and uphold the interests and well-being of Filipinos Overseas. The evolvement of theCommission on Filipinos Overseas can be traced over a series of enactments starting in 1974with Presidential Decree No. 442, also known as the Labor Code of the Philippines. The decreeprovided for the creation of the Overseas Employment Development Board (OEDB) to set up asystematic program for overseas employment of Filipino workers, as well as to register andmonitor emigrants leaving for various countries abroad.

The ensuring years, which was characterized by steady increases in migration figures,made it expedient to institute an independent unit which shall comprise the local support networksolely for Filipino migrants. Thus, in June 1978, Presidential Decree No. 1412 was passed,creating the Office of Emigrant Affairs (OEA). The decree specifically identified as recipients of itsservices, Filipinos who will be leaving the country as emigrants. In June 1980, to strengthen itspolicy on promotion of migrant welfare and interest, Batas Pambansa Blg. 79 was enacted. It

created the Commission on Filipinos Overseas, replacing OEA and simultaneously retaining thelatter's mandate, and expanding its functions to include the formulation of policyrecommendations to promote the welfare and interests of Filipinos overseas.

Mission / Vision

Mission

Promote stronger economic and cultural ties between the Philippines and Filipinos Overseas.

Vision

The CFO envisions a community of Filipinos overseas widely recognized as a competitive world-class community with productive roles in the countries where they live and with strong political,economic, and cultural ties with the Philippines.

Functions

Pursuant to the provisions of Batas Pambansa Blg. 79, the CFO is tasked to perform thefollowing functions:

•

Provide assistance to the President and the Congress of the Philippines in theformulation of policies and measures concerning or affecting Filipinos overseas;

• Develop and implement programmes to promote the interest and well-being of Filipinos

overseas;

• Serve as a forum for preserving and enhancing the social, economic, and cultural ties of

Filipinos overseas with the motherland; and

• Provide liaison services to Filipinos overseas with appropriate government and private

agencies in the transaction of business and similar ventures in the Philippines.

http://www.cfo.gov.ph/bp79.htm








The clientele and main beneficiaries of the Commission's programs are:

• Filipino permanent migrants or permanent residents abroad

• Filipinos overseas who have become citizens of other countries

• Filipino spouses and fiancees of foreign nationals leaving the country

• Descendants of Filipinos overseas, as defined in Batas Pambansa Blg. 79• Filipino youth overseas

• Exchange Visitor Program participants

Program Area I: Migrant Social and Economic Integration

The overall objective of this programme is to ensure that all Filipinos migrating to other countriesare adequately prepared to meet the practical and psychological problems attendant tointernational migration.

The Migrant Social and Economic Integration Programme will undertake activities designed toprovide Filipino emigrants with adequate structured information and advice about all aspects of migration to their countries of destination, as well as assistance in achieving early social andeconomic adjustment within their new environment.

This programme also provides for a continuing linkage with registered Filipino migrants, and ameans by which migrants can be assisted by cooperating organizations in the process of adjustment and settlement in their host countries.

It will also assist in promoting and facilitating the reintegration of returning migrants into theFilipino national mainstream.

Pre-Departure Registration and Orientation Seminars

Pre-Departure Registration

Filipino emigrants or those leaving the country to settle permanently abroad are requiredto register with the Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO). Part of its registration requirementsis attendance in the Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar (PDOS) to prepare them for settlementoverseas. Those who are (12) years old and below are exempt from attending the PDOS. Theymust, however, be registered, even if by proxy. Children of emigrants, aged 13 to 19, are requiredto attend the Peer Counseling Program to help facilitate their adjustment to a new environment.The registration of Filipino emigrants started in 1981, or a year after the CFO was created. Theregistration process generates an information resource on Filipino emigrants, which in turn,provides accurate reference for policy formulation and program development.

Pre-Departure Orientation Seminars (PDOS)





Country-specific pre-departure orientation seminars are conducted for departing Filipinoemigrants to address their adjustment concerns in their destination countries. In these seminars,various topics are discussed such as:

• Travel regulations;

• Immigration procedures;

• Cultural differences;• Settlement concerns;

• Employment and social security concerns; and

• Rights and obligations of Filipino migrants.

CFO issues a counseling certificate as proof that the applicant has attended the guidance andcounseling session. After receipt of the passport and visa, the fiancé(e)s and spouses will have toregister with the CFO prior to their departure.

Guidance and Counseling Services

Per Republic Act 8239 and Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Order 28-94, Filipinos

proceeding abroad as fiancé(e)s and spouses of foreign nationals are required to attend theCFO's guidance and counseling programs as a pre-requisite to the issuance of passports. Theobjective of this program is to help Filipino fiancé(e)s and spouses of foreign nationals makeinformed decisions regarding their marriage to foreign nationals and to prepare them for their adjustments in cross-cultural marriages.

Among others, Filipino fiancé(e)s and spouses are provided with the following information:

• Migration laws affecting them;

• Welfare and support services available abroad;

• Rights of migrants overseas; and

Coping up with problematic or difficult domestic situations.

Peer Counseling

Counseling services are conducted for departing children of Filipino emigrants agedthirteen to nineteen (13 to 19) years old. This service responds to the needs of young Filipinoemigrants by helping them cope with change in their social environment. The sessions providethem with information that will help facilitate adjustment in a new environment and prepare themfor possible peer pressures which could result from migration. Counseling sessions areconducted through group dynamics to surface expectations and anticipated changes broughtabout by settlement in a new country.

Post Arrival Services



To complement the pre-departure services provided in the Philippines, the Commissionon Filipinos Overseas encourages overseas-based Filipino associations, welfare groups andother private organizations to provide post arrival services to newly arrived Filipino immigrants.The program aims to provide Filipino migrants with relevant information that will enable them to

adjust and cope with the demands of settlement in a new country. Post arrival services includelanguage courses, orientation programs, and networking or referral services to employmentagencies, migrant resource groups, and other Filipino associations within the area of settlement.

Public Information and Education Program

Community Education Program

The Community Education Program (CEP) is an annual information campaign conductedby the CFO in coordination with various government agencies, non-government organizations,local government units and academic institutions. The program seeks to assist prospectivemigrants in making informed decisions regarding working or migrating abroad, as well asgenerate community involvement on migration concerns. It also aims to raise public awareness

on various issues concerning migration, intermarriages and existing government policies andprograms directed against illegal recruitment, documentation fraud and trafficking in persons,among others.

Magbiyahe: Pilipino Style Video

The Magbiyahe: Pilipino Style Video is a video production produced by CFO and co-sponsored by the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) which aims to informpassport applicants of the realities of migration and situations Filipino travelers may experienceand encounter when preparing to travel or live abroad. Said video is shown to passport applicantsat the Department of Foreign Affairs including its 10 regional offices in the Philippines and toFilipino emigrants at the CFO.

Public Assistance Services

CFO regularly provides assistance or referrals in response to various requests by Filipinoemigrants and their families. Requests involve cases of trafficking, domestic violence, adoption,child support, sham marriages, blacklisting, whereabouts, document verification, immigration,repatriation, employment-related concerns, among others. CFO also responds to requests for emigrant data and statistics from the other government agencies, private sector, academe, mediaand civil society.

Pre-departure Briefings at the Foreign Service Institute

To orient departing foreign service officers (FSOs) and employees and service attachesof various government agencies on the services and programs of the Commission, CFOparticipates in the quarterly pre-departure briefings organized by the Foreign Service Institute.Topics also include trafficking issues, policies concerning the management and operation of Philippine schools overseas, processing of overseas donations, and the elements of contingencyplans to be submitted by Posts, among others. Participating officers were posted in Philippineembassies and consulates in Asia-Pacific, Europe, North & South America, Africa, and the Middle

http://www.dfa.gov.ph/

http://www.dfa.gov.ph/



East.

Educational Modules on International Migration and Development

The Educational Modules on International Migration and Development project seeks to

integrate issues and concerns on international migration into the social studies and valueseducation subjects in the elementary and high school levels. It aims to provide a systematic andcomprehensive mechanism for disseminating information on migration realities and concerns,and at the same time, emphasize the values of patriotism, love of country, and pride in theFilipino culture and herita students. The project also aims to purposely prepare potential migrantsabout migration realities and to help them make informed decisions. The integration of suchlearning areas in the Philippine curriculum will also be extended to the tertiary level.

Migrants Advisory Information System

The Migrants Advisory Information System (MAIS) is a computer-based information toolthat aims to address the information needs of our countrymen who are considering migration as

an option.

It covers four (4) specific areas:

• Country Profile of Filipino Migrants' Destination Countries

• Profile of Migrants Support Groups and Welfare Organizations Overseas

• Profile of Filipino Organizations Overseas

Program Area II: Filipino Education and Heritage

This program will promote, under the auspices of the Commission and also incooperation with others agencies and institutions, the provision of critical educational services aswell as the continued exposure of younger generations of overseas Filipinos to Philippine history,culture and institutions. It will assist in efforts to provide necessary schooling for children of overseas Filipinos with the view of facilitating, among others, their eventual integration /reintegration into the Philippine educational system. This program will also include efforts topromote and advance in an appropriate manner the teaching and study of the Filipino language atvarious levels of learning within and outside the schools system overseas, particularly in countriesor territories which have a high density of permanent overseas Filipino residents. In addition, theFilipino Education and Heritage Program will promote projects and activities which will bringyounger generations of overseas Filipinos to the Philippines, to encourage them to know thecountry and its institutions better, and to inculcate in them the ideal that their identity and interestswill best be served in the context of preserving their cultural moorings with that of all-Filipino

community

Program Area III: All-Filipino Unity and National Development



This program aims to foster better cohesion and a unity of purpose within and among the variousoverseas Filipino organizations so that their own interests and well-being could be promoted,supported or enhanced within a greater, more formidable all-Filipino community. The task of promoting more cohesiveness and unity of purpose will be undertaken mainly by providing thefullest possible support and encouragement to initiatives of overseas Filipino community leadersto fostering Filipino national unity. In this, government will mostly provide a supportive role so thatthe movement for all-Filipino unity is consistent with free enterprise, people empowerment andbecomes sustainable on its own in the long term. This program will also undertake a parallel effortto instill a sense of Filipino national pride to overseas Filipinos / Filipino communities, and provideappropriate public recognition to those who have made a significant contributions to progress intheir countries of residence or to the Philippines. The other dimension of this programmemaintains the objective of sustainable national development ad accordingly, the professional andtechnical expertise, financial resources, capital goods, as well as training and informationresources at the disposal of overseas Filipinos will be systematically encouraged to flow intoeconomically active sectors in the Philippines. Furthermore, as the world's economic gravity shiftsto the Asia-Pacific basin, overseas Filipino professionals will be enjoined to contribute toPhilippine sustainable development as advocates of the Philippines, and as resource persons intheir countries of residence which now seek expertise to guide policy making and investmentdecisions in the Asia-Pacific region

The Commission on Filipinos Overseas Report

Documents

Transcript of The Commission on Filipinos Overseas Report