Overseas_filipinos

Overseas Filipinos
Total population
11,000,000Yvette Collymore (June 2003). Rapid Population Growth, Crowded Cities Present Challenges in the Philippines. Population Reference Bureau. Retrieved on 2007-08-14. “An estimated 10 percent of the country\'s population, or nearly 8 million people, are overseas Filipino workers distributed in 182 countries, according to POPCOM. That is in addition to the estimated 3 million migrants who work illegally abroad”
Regions with significant populations
United States 4,000,000 [USA]  Saudi Arabia 1,019,577 (2006) [SAU]  Malaysia 239,373 [MAL]  Canada 437,940 Table 29. Stock Estimate of Overseas Filipinos As of December 2006. Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA). Retrieved on 2007-09-02.  UAE 450,000 http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticleNew.asp?xfile=data/theuae/2008/January/theuae_January859.xml&section=theuae&col=  Japan 258,977 [JPN]  United Kingdom 200,000 Filipino baby boom in the UK. Manila Times (September 24, 2007). Retrieved on 2008-02-27.  Italy 200,000 Lawrence Casiraya. "Microsoft training centers cater to 200,000 OFWs in Italy", Inquirer.net. Retrieved on 2007-08-14.   Mexico 200,000 Floro L. Mercene. "Filipinos in Mexican history", Manila Bulliten online. Retrieved on 2007-08-14.   Taiwan 158,116 [TWN]  Singapore 136,189 [POEA2004]  Hong Kong 130,810 [HKG]  Australia 129,400 [AUS]  Kuwait 144,955 [SAU]  South Korea 70,000 "Korean embassy hints at action vs 15,000 undocumented OFWs", Asian journal, July 16, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-08-14.   Germany 53,995 [not in citation given]  Guam 45,600 [GWM]  Qatar 58,358 [POEA2004]  France 47,745 [not in citation given]  Israel 37,155 [POEA2004]  Lebanon 30,000 [LBN]  Austria 29,818  Greece 27,043 [not in citation given]  Spain 26,505 [not in citation given]  New Zealand 16,938 [NZL]  Norway 19,291 [not in citation given]  Netherlands 18,456 [not in citation given]  Macau 18,447 [POEA2004]  Sweden 17,343 [not in citation given]  Nigeria 14,146 [SAU]  Belgium 12,810 [not in citation given]
Language(s)
Filipino, Tagalog, Visayan languages, Ilocano, Tausug, other Philippine languages, English
Religion(s)
Predominantly Catholic; Protestantism; Islam; Nonreligious
Related ethnic groups
Filipino people, Filipino American, Filipino Canadian, Filipino Australian, Filipino British, Filipino Hong Konger

An Overseas Filipino is a person of Philippine origin who lives outside of the Philippines. This term applies both to people of Filipino ancestry who now live and reside as citizens of a different country, and those who continue to be Filipino citizens and those supporting their families back in the Philippines. It may also extend to Filipinos having extended holidays abroad, however, common usage does not usually include this group.

The term Global Filipino is now also being used to refer to a Filipino citizen who lives and works abroad. The performance of the Philippine economy over recent decades, combined with a widespread knowledge of English, a legacy of the Philippines\' position as a former United States colony, have made Filipinos one of the most internationally mobile nationalities. Filipino workers greatly contribute to this, as they need to support their families back at home. As a result, many countries around the world have a substantial Filipino community.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo recently coined the term Overseas Filipino Investor or OFI for Filipino expatriates. This is due to the direct economic contributions of Overseas Filipinos in means of remittances, buying property back in the Philippines, and creating businesses that would help job creation back home."Editorial — Overseas Filipino investors", Philippines Today, 15 Oct – 14 Nov 2001. Retrieved on 2007-08-01. 

Contents 1 Population in Diaspora 1.1 Overseas Filipino Workers 2 Nations with large Filipino constituencies 3 Issues 4 See also 5 References 6 External links 6.1 General statistics from Philippine government 6.2 From other sources

Population in Diaspora

There are more than 11 million overseas Filipinos worldwide, about 11% of the total population of the Philippines.

Each year, the Philippines sends out more than a million of its nationals to work abroad through its overseas employment program. Others leave to become permanent residents of their country of destination. Overseas Filipinos are typically known to be as doctors, nurses, accountants, IT professionals, engineers & architects, entertainers, technicians, teachers, military servicemen, students, and domestic helpers.

According to estimates by the Central Bank of the Philippines, overseas Filipinos are expected to send back $14.7 billion in remittances to their ancestral homeland in 2007, up from the $13 billion in 2006."Filipino overseas workers remittances rise by 26 pct in March", People\'s daily Online, 15 May 2007. Retrieved on 2007-06-07. 

Overseas Filipino Workers

An Overseas Filipino Worker (often abbreviated as OFW) is a Filipino who is employed in work outside the Philippines. Some eight million Filipinos, out of a population of 80 million, have left the country to seek work abroad, attracted by jobs with salaries that far exceed those of jobs available in the Philippines. These jobs often include nursing, technology, fishing, and teaching, although a third are composed of unskilled workers. Money sent by OFWs back to the Philippines is a major factor in the country\'s economy, amounting to more than US$10 billion in 2005.Overseas Filipino Remittances. Retrieved on 2006-11-21. This makes the country the fourth largest recipient of foreign remittances behind India, China and Mexico. The amount represents 13.5% of the Philippines\' GDP, the largest in proportion to the domestic economy among the four countries mentioned.Remittances can\'t replace good economic policies. Retrieved on 2007-05-10.

However, the exodus of workers from the country includes an increasing number of skilled workers taking on unskilled work overseas, resulting in what has been referred to as "brain drain," particularly in the health and education sectors. Also, the exodus can result in underemployment, for example, in cases where doctors undergo retraining to become nurses.

Nations with large Filipino constituencies

• United States. Despite race relations problems of the late 19th and early 20th centuries in the American Northwest, most Filipino Americans today find it easy to integrate with American society. The Filipino population in the U.S. is estimated to be 2,807,731.^[USA] As of 2007, this number grew to an estimated 4 million. ^[USA]. Filipinos remain as the second-largest Asian American group in the country; Tagalog is the fifth most spoken language in the U.S. Filipinas comprise a large portion of the roughly 4,000-6,000 women who annually come to the U.S. via international marriage agenciesThe "Mail-Order Bride" Industry and its Impact on U.S. Immigration, Robert J. Scholes..

• United Kingdom Nurses and caregivers have begun flocking into the United Kingdom these past years. The island-nation has welcomed about 20,000 nurses and other Filipinos of various employment and lifestyle during the past 5 years. According to news reports, the United Kingdom is home to around 200,000 OFWs.[1] See also: Filipino British

• Iraq. In spite of the Philippine government ban on OFWs working in Iraq, an estimated 1,000-3,000 Filipinos work there. Most work on US Military bases around the country as cooks and laundry service, sometimes as third-country national security guards. This is the only foreign nation in which Filipino men outnumber Filipino women.

• Canada. Only a small population of Filipinos resided in Canada until the late 20th century. The government of Canada has estimated that as of 2007 there are nearly 400,000 Canadians of Filipino origin.^{[not in citation given]}

• Spain. With around 25,000 citizens, the Filipinos form the 2nd largest Asian community in Spain behind the Chinese.^{[citation needed]} Although many Filipinos did immigrate or ran away to Spain after the United States took over the islands in 1898, most of the Filipinos moved to the old metropoli during the 1960s and 1970s seeking jobs, which in many cases were related to housekeeping or industrial activities. There\'s also a significant group of Spaniards of Filipino origins (some of whom are from 3rd and 4th generations) including some famous people like Isabel Preysler, mother of famous singer Enrique Iglesias.^{[citation needed]}

• Ireland. As of 2008, the Philippine embassy in London reported that there are 11,500 Filipinos in Ireland.Profile of the Filipino Community in Ireland, Philippine Embassy in London, <http://www.philembassy-uk.org/default.asp?iId=KHEHL>. Retrieved on March 8, 2008

• Hong Kong. There are approximately 140,000 Filipinos in Hong Kong, of whom most are domestic helpers (30,000 of them being members of the Filipino Migrant Workers Union). Filipino maids are known by the locals as amahs, or more often feiyungs (less politely bun mui or bun bun). A Hong Kong work visa requires some amount of higher education; and in some cases Filipino women with college degrees and perfect command of English are willing to work as maids and nannies for a salary higher than they could make at home.^[HKG]

• Singapore. As many as 136,000 Overseas Filipinos work and reside in the nation-state of Singapore.^[POEA2004] Moreover, about 200,000 Filipinos visit the country annually, making them one of the biggest foreign tourists of Singapore.^{[citation needed]}

• Taiwan. According to the 2006 data of the government of Taiwan, there are 96,000 Filipinos currently living in Taiwan. Of these 96,000 Filipinos, 58,704 are in manufacturing industries and 34,602 are in social or personal services (e.g. maids).^[ROC] However, according to 2004 data by the Philippine Government, there are 2,037 Filipinos living in Taiwan permanently, 154,135 are in Taiwan for work contracts, and 4,500 go to Taiwan irregularly, which make a total of 160,672. It is not known why there is such a big difference between these two numbers (96,000 vs. 160,672).

• Middle East. Many Filipinos work in the Middle East (mostly Saudi Arabia and UAE) as Engineers, Nurses or Hospital workers, Accountant, Office workers, Construction workers, Restaurant workers and maids. It is estimated^{[attribution needed]} that more than 2 million Filipinos have made the Middle East their home.^{[citation needed]}

• Japan Some 250,000 Filipinos and people of mixed Filipino and Japanese descent are listed to be living within Japan\'s geographic confines.^[JPN] However, this number is speculated to be larger, surpassing the one million mark, in relation to many unlisted and illegal Filipino nationals in the Land of the Rising Sun.^{[citation needed]}

• South Korea According to the Commission on Filipinos Overseas, as of December 2006, some 70,000 Filipinos work and live in Korea. Of this number, some 6,000 are permanent residents, some 50,000 work legally, and some 14,000 are "irregular" or do not have the proper documents.

• Lebanon As many as 30,000 OFWs are working in the nation of Lebanon. Due to the recent turmoil between Lebanon and Israel, however, many have been repatriated back to the Philippines, while others have been relocated to Cyprus, a part of the Philippine evacuation plan.^[LBN]

• Australia In 2000 Australia recorded about 127,000 Filipinos and/or Filipino Australians.^[AUS]

• Greece The Philippine Embassy has reported an estimated of 40,000 Filipinos in Greece.http://www.athenspe.net/about.html

• Malaysia As Sabah is very close to the Philippines, there are many Filipino residents, as well as illegal immigrants there. Filipinos make up about 30% of the entire population of Sabah and they enumerate up to 900,000. Many Filipinos in Malaysia residents come to work in construction industries, fisheries, and other labor intensive sectors in hopes of a better living. Most live in stilt slums scattered behind cities or on offshore islands. The Philippine government also has promised to establish a consulate provide any necessary help to its nationals. Historically, The Philippines has a dormant claim on the territory. Native Sabahans themselves are closely related to southern Filipinos.^{[citation needed]}

• New Zealand There are about 30,000 Filipino residents including Filipino-New Zealanders, as well as illegal immigrants who mostly overstay their visitor visas. New Zealand is mostly looking for farmers and information/communication technology workers. There is a small amount of Filipino maids and caregivers present in the country. The New Zealand government is very tight on the type of people coming in and out of the country. New Zealand has accommodated Filipino telecommunications as well as media. As in the other countries above, most either have The Filipino Channel (TFC), operated by ABS-CBN and/or GMA Pinoy TV.^{[citation needed]}

• Norway People with Filipino background in Norway is estimated to about 9,000, most of them living in the Oslo urban area. Most of the Filipino immigrants to Norway are females, representing 76 % of the total of 9,000.^{[citation needed]}

Issues

Many overseas Filipino workers, both blue collar and white collar, face many obstacles abroad. These include illegal recruitment, mysterious deaths, racial profiling and discrimination,Malaysia\'s trouble with migrants. Retrieved on 2007-03-21. and kidnappings.

In some countries, such as in Hong Kong, China, Singapore, and in Middle Eastern countries, including Iraq,[Info-Bureau FW: STATEMENT ON FILIPINO HOSTAGE]. Philippine Women Centre of B.C — requoted by lists.ilps-news.com Mailing Lists (19 July, 2004). Retrieved on 2007-03-21. Saudi Arabia, and Lebanon, many OFWs have reported that their pay was withheld, while others have had their documents confiscated or hidden. Furthermore, some of these workers, who are mostly domestic helpers, are abused, or even murdered. The most well-known OFWs that have been involved in these cases include Flor ContemplacionSINGAPORE: The Execution of Flor Contemplacion - A Day of Shame for Singapore. Retrieved on 2007-03-21. and Sarah Balabagan.A Death Sentence for a Young Filipino Maid Highlights the Problem of Abuse of asian Servants. Retrieved on 2007-03-21.

The Philippine government has been keen on taking action on these cases with local Philippine consulates and embassies present to assist with the OFW\'s needs.Shaping the World the Global Filipino. Retrieved on 2007-03-21. NGOs catered for them, such as MigranteMigrante International:About us. Retrieved on 2007-03-21. and Gabriela.B R I E L A N E T W O R K U S A A Philippine-US Women\'s Solidarity Mass Organization, est. 1989. Retrieved on 2007-07-08. are also present. Action by the government on these cases have had mixed results with some OFWs returning to the country happy while others returning either injured or dead.OFW mauled in Saudi is dead. Retrieved on 2007-03-21.Family cries justice for OFW dead in Lebanon. Retrieved on 2007-03-21.

Other problems faced by OFWs today include the risk of involvement in a conflict and the risk of being kidnapped, such as those in Lebanon,Leyte OFW, happy to be home though unable to bring anything. Retrieved on 2007-03-21. Iraq,Hero\'s welcome awaits Angelo dela Cruz after Iraq ordeal. Retrieved on 2007-03-21. and Nigeria.Nigeria kidnap: Filipinos home. Retrieved on 2007-03-21.

Another great risk for OFW\'s is the rise of Filipina women becoming sex slaves from neighboring East Asian countries like Japan and South Korea. Thousands of Filipina women travel abroad for domestic work only to be tricked by their foreign employers into sexual slavery. The employer takes their passports, holds wages or physically abuses them all together in order to force them into submission. With the rise of unemployment, alcoholism with Filipino men and government corruption, more and more Filipinos are traveling abroad and increasing the risk of OFW women becoming sexually abused victims of the ever growing and constant demand of perversion from foreigners.

See also

Filipino people Filipino Americans Filipino Australians British Filipino Canadians of Filipino descent Filipinos in Hong Kong Mexicans of Filipino descent Filipinos in South Korea

Little Manila Economy of the Philippines Philippine nationality law Balikbayan box PinoyCentric Philippine Center

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

People from the Philippines in Hong Kong

• Life on the Spot Two Filipino expats blog about life and living in Doha, Qatar. Provides helpful insights and tips to those moving to Qatar.
• The sham of being a Fil-Am, on the controversy surrounding overseas Filipinos in Philippine basketball
• OFW-Connect, The Web Site for Filipino Migrants around the world
• TheFilipino.com, List of Filipino Associations in the US and Worldwide
• Oyaye.com Filipino Social Networking Community Abroad
• Overseas-Filipinos.Net, The Web Site for OFWs and Filipino Immigrants Worldwide
• PNI Overseas Recruitment An site for recruitment of overseas Filipinos
• PBSN/Naija Pinoys Yahoogroup Philippine Barangay Society in Nigeria (PBSN) Yahoogroups.

General statistics from Philippine government

• POEA2004 ^{a b e f g k l m n}  Stock Estimate of Overseas Filipinos (MS Excel). Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) (2004). Retrieved on 2007-08-01. (overseas Filipinos working and/or living overseas):
  • 3,187,586 stay permanently, 3,599,257 stay for work contracts, and 1,296,972 stay irregularly (without proper document), which make a sum of 8,083,815.
• Press release on the 2004 Survey on Overseas Filipinos, Philippine National Statistics Office, on OFWs:
  • 1.06 million Overseas Filipinos Workers
  • 33.4% are unskilled workers, 15.4% are Trades and related workers, 15.1% are plant and machine operators and assemblers.
  • 49.3% are males, 50.7% are females.
  • Remittances are 64.7 billion Philippine pesos (equals 1.2 billion USD then)
• Deployed Landbased Overseas Filipino Workers by Destination (New hires and Rehires) (MS Excel format), Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), 2005, on OFWs:
  • 733,970 are landbased, 247,707 are seabased, which make a sum of 981,677. There is a 5.15% growth since 2004\'s 933,588.
  • Remittances are 9,727,138,000 USD. There is a 26.6% growth since 2004.
• List of Additional Reports from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration Statistics Page

From other sources

• ^a b AUS - Year Book Australia, 2007 Contents >> Population >> Country of birth. Australia Bureau of Statistics (2007). Retrieved on 2007-08-08..
• ^a GWM - Country Profile: Guam - People. CIA Factbook. Retrieved on 2007-05-12..
• ^a b HKG - Hong Kong Yearbook 2005 - population. Central Statistics Office (2005). Retrieved on 2007-04-12.
• ^a LBN - Maila Ager. "\'Standby fund’ for OFWS in Lebanon gets House committee nod", Philippine Daily Inquirer, August 3 2006. Retrieved on 2007-05-09. .
• ^a NZL - "QuickStats About Culture and Identity", Statistics New Zealand Tatauranga Aoteroa, August 3 2006. Retrieved on 2007-05-12. .
• ^a SAU - Table 29. Stock Estimate of Overseas Filipinos As of December 2006. Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) (2006). Retrieved on 2007-09-01..
• ^a b TWN - Alien Workers in Taiwan-Fukien Area by Industry and Nationality (JPG and PDF format), 2006 February, CLA, Taiwan.
• ^a MAL - Table 29. Stock Estimate of Overseas Filipinos As of December 2006. Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) (2006). Retrieved on 2007-09-01..
• USA
  • ^a1 Selected Population Profile in the United States - Population Group: Filipino alone or in any combination. U.S. census bureau (2005). Retrieved on 2007-05-09. “Population Group: Filipino alone or in any combination - Total population: 288,378,137”.
  • ^b1 b2 Background Note: Philippines. U.S. Department of State, Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs (2007). Retrieved on 2006-11-04. “There are an estimated four million Americans of Philippine ancestry in the United States, and more than 250,000 American citizens in the Philippines.”

v • d • e Overseas Filipinos
Asia	Hong Kong · Japan · Malaysia · South Korea · Thailand · United Arab Emirates
Africa	Nigeria
Europe	Austria · Greece · Ireland · Italy · Portugal · Spain · United Kingdom
North America	Canada · Mexico · United States
Oceania	Australia · New Zealand

v • d • e Ethnic groups in the Philippines
Filipinos | Overseas Filipinos Indigenous groups Bicolano · Ibanag · Ilocano · Ivatan · Kapampangan · Moro · Pangasinan · Sambal · Tagalog  · Visayan  · Tribal groups Non-indigenous groups American · Arab · Chinese · Desi · Japanese · Jewish · Korean · Mexican · Spanish

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