OFW deployment up 9.8% in 2023

MANILA, Philippines — The number of Filipinos working abroad rose by 9.8 percent last year from 2022 as more people took advantage of employment opportunities overseas to earn more.

According to data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), there were 2.16 million overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) last year, up from the 1.96 million estimate in 2022.

This is based on the PSA’s survey conducted from April to September 2023.

Overseas contract workers accounted for bulk of the total estimate last year at 98 percent or 2.12 million, higher than the 1.94 million last year.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort said in an email that the increase in the number of OFWs “could be attributed to more Filipinos taking the opportunity for the bigger differentials or premium in wages or salaries when working abroad or overseas.”

He said many OFWs take advantage of this opportunity by sending most of their earnings overseas to their families in the Philippines, where the cost of living is lower than in some host countries.

PSA data showed OFW remittances rose by 20.8 percent to P238.63 billion last year from P197.47 billion in 2022.

The total remittances last year cover cash sent by OFWs (P187.11 billion), cash brought home (P44.70 billion) and in kind (P6.81 billion).

Banks were the most preferred mode for sending cash remittances, accounting for 62.2 percent or P116.47 billion of the OFWs’ total cash remittances.

Money transfer services came in next with a 36.5-percent share, accounting for P68.30 billion of all cash remittances, while 1.3 percent or P2.34 billion were sent through the agency and/or local office of the OFW, as well as friends or co-workers.

Majority of the OFWs last year are women, with the number growing to 1.20 million from 1.14 million in 2022.

In terms of age, those who were 45 years old and above accounted for the biggest number of OFWs last year at 24.1 percent.

This was followed by OFWs aged 30 to 34 years with 23.5 percent and the 35 to 39 years old age group with 18.6 percent.

The PSA said 41.1 percent of OFWs last year were engaged in elementary occupations or performance of simple and routine tasks including cleaning, restocking supplies and performing basic maintenance in apartments and offices and helping in simple food preparation tasks.

Service and sales was the second most common occupation among OFWs with a 14.7 percent share, followed by those working as plant and machine operators and assemblers at 12.1 percent last year.

Bulk or 77.4 percent of OFWs last year were deployed in Asia.

North and South America placed second with 9.8 percent, followed by Europe (8.4 percent), Australia (three percent) and Africa (1.3 percent).

Among Asian countries, Saudi Arabia was the top destination of OFWs, accounting for 20 percent of the total in 2023.

Around 19 percent of OFWs last year were from CALABARZON (Cavite-Laguna-Batangas-Rizal-Quezon).

Region III or Central Luzon was the second largest source of OFWs last year with 15.2 percent, followed by the National Capital Region with 9.6 percent.