International remittances fuel PH education and learning
Data shows that education is one of the main reasons why immigrants and foreign workers abroad (OFW) send money to the Philippines.
Due to the high cost of tuition and the positive opportunities that formal education provides for young Filipinos, OFWs must support their families and loved ones by providing education.
According to a recent WorldRemit survey, education was a top reason OFWs send money home to loved ones, with 35% of respondents saying the amount they send for education has increased since the start of COVID-19.1.
As schools across the country prepare to hold end-of-school-year rites, from June to July 2022, OFWs can look forward to the graduation of loved ones they have supported.
“Education is one of the main drivers of economic development for any nation and remittances play an important role in supporting education,” said Earl Melivo, Country Director of WorldRemit. “We enable Filipinos to continue supporting children’s education by sending money home.”
Impact of remittances on education
In its 2020 Global Education Monitoring Report, UNESCO said: “258 million children and young people were completely excluded from education, with poverty being the main barrier to access”. And the COVID-19 pandemic has only made the situation worse, as children living in poverty are unable to continue their education using laptops, cellphones and the internet, compared to older students. rich.
In the Philippines, the number of out-of-school youth (OSY) increased to 25.2% in April 2020, according to a study released by the United Nations Children’s Fund. With a separate report from the Philippine Statistics Authority indicating that one in four people between the ages of 6 and 24 were not attending school in 2020, 11.9% cited the high cost of education as the reason. .
Besides creating opportunities to live a more prosperous life, education has the potential to equip young Filipinos with the skills and knowledge to make meaningful contributions to the development of society and reduce labor.
In addition to paying for basic daily needs, such as food and clothing, remittances help pay for school fees, books, teaching tools, learning aids, and other necessary educational materials.
More than half (52.2%) of April-June 2021 remittances received in the Philippines were earmarked for education, including expenditure on education and ancillary services for students and families by the through educational institutions.
“We recognize the transformative impact of education in the lives of young people in the Philippines. The ripple effect achieved through an educated population has enormous benefits for the world of today and tomorrow,” Melivo said.
