The Filipinos are seen as hardworking, devoted, and caring people. We are nurses and doctors, caregivers and nannies, engineers and architects among others to the world. Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) has time and again proved these characteristics.
We often call them the OFWs but we consider them as “Bagong Bayani” because of the sacrifices they do to provide for their families and for making considerable contributions to the country’s economic growth because of their remittances. We call them “Bagong Bayani” for their emotional strength, sacrificing their own self and stay overseas for decades just to provide better future for their families.
As the world continues to fight the Covid-19 pandemic, countries implemented an unprecedented shutdown and slowing down on operations of almost all services to at least limit the number of and rate of transmission. Tens of thousands of OFWs all over the world are severely affected and are forced to return home, seeking the comfort and support of the country.
On 4 August, the BalikaBayanihan campaign was launched online for volunteers and partners. BalikaBayanihan is a partnership of the national and local government, OFW organizations, Non-Governmental Organizations, Civil Society Organizations, development agencies and private organizations to provide integrated services to the repatriated OFWs affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. BalikaBayanihan promotes volunteerism among Filipinos to extend a helping hand to hundreds of thousands of repatriated OFWs to help them succeed through sustainable jobs or business in the Philippines.
The campaign is focused in reliving the spirit of “Bayanihan” or volunteerism among Filipinos from all walks of life and creed to contribute in whatever they could to provide a helping hand to our Overseas Filipinos by providing them the necessary support they most need to reintegrate and succeed in their chosen investments and/or business endeavors.
The campaign calls on the volunteerism spirit of Filipinos to help the returning women and men OFWs who partly saved the country during past economic crises. It is also a call for partnership by the Overseas Filipino organizations with government agencies, local government units, development agencies, civil society organizations and the private sector to look into the plight of the OFWs by providing the needed resources – manpower and funds and/or mobilizing their volunteer network to serve as mentors to the OFWs.
Moved by the difficult situation that many OFWs face during the pandemic, the Atikha Overseas Workers and Communities Initiative, Inc. (Atikha), a civil society organization working with Overseas Filipinos and their families to maximize their gains of working abroad, signed up with the Be a Volunteer Platform of the Philippine National Volunteer Service Coordinating Agency (PNVSCA). Atikha in partnership with the PNVSCA and the Overseas Workers Welfare Association (OWWA) committed to spearhead the call for the support of all sectors of the society to help address the situation of the OFWs.
In his opening speech, PNVSCA Executive Director Donald James D. Gawe mentioned that, “The PNVSCA considers the BalikaBayanihan campaign as a tribute to the women and men who have dedicated their lives to helping the OFWs through volunteering work.” Director Gawe also shared in his speech, “The campaign envisions contributing to the desire of the society that our dear OFWs who returned because of COVID-19 would find work or shall have sustainable livelihood opportunities in their hometowns, or at least in any part of the country and stay for good.”
OWWA Administrator Hans Leo Cacdac has also expressed strong support on the initiative and echoes the call for volunteer partners to participate in the campaign.
During the program, the implementing mechanisms of the whole initiative were also presented by the Chairperson of Atikha, Ms. Mai Dizon-Añonuevo. She explained that to ensure the initiative contributes to the overall goal of reintegration, the following principles should be adopted: integrated approach, multi-stakeholder consultation and participation, gender-responsiveness, rights-based, and development oriented.
The PNVSCA, together with the Atikha and OWWA, calls on for volunteer mentors and partners to provide mentoring, technical assistance and other support services as well as to help the OFWs access jobs, training, business opportunities, and other services.
The initiative encourages OFWs to link with BalikaBayanihan online platform to access psychosocial services, training, business opportunities, financial services, mentoring, and other support services to enable them to succeed in coming home for good. Volunteer mentors and partners as well as repatriated OFWs and OFW owned group enterprises can participate through registering on the BalikaBayanihan Online Platform.
The online meeting was attended by around 130 participants and representatives from the national and local government agencies, civil society organizations, development agencies, and private sector who express their strong support for the initiative.
For more information and inquiries on the BalikaBayanihan initiative you may contact Ms. Mai Dizon-Anonuevo at [email protected] or Mr. Kenneth C. Siruelo at [email protected], and/or you may visit at www.balikabayanihan.org.
The author is currently the Program Officer, Volunteerism for Development Communication and Advocacy Program, Philippine National Volunteer Service Coordinating Agency.Visit PNVSCA website (www.pnvsca.gov.ph) and PNVSCA Facebook (facebook.com/PNVSCA) for other stories and information on volunteering