PASAY CITY 04 July 2022 — “Remittances do more than address basic human needs. They represent every migrant worker’s dream of a brighter future and a better life,” said Secretary of Foreign Affairs Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. in his keynote address during the commemoration of International Day of Family Remittances (IDFR) at the Department of Foreign Affairs Bulwagan Apolinario Mabini on 28 June 2022.
In his speech, Secretary Locsin paid tribute to more than 200 million migrant workers worldwide whose remittances play a transformative role in the lives of their families and countries of origin. He further underscored how the continuous flow of remittances shielded the global economy from the socioeconomic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The ripple effects of remittances spreads beyond the immediate households they keep above water…It spreads to national economies and from there back to the rest of the world,” said Secretary Locsin as he explained how remittances flow from individuals to entire economies.
This year marks the fourth year since the adoption of a United Nations General Assembly resolution recognizing IDFR as an official United Nations observance. In 2018, under Secretary Locsin’s leadership as then Permanent Representative of the Philippines to the United Nations in New York, the Philippines tabled and led the campaign for the adoption of the landmark UN General Assembly resolution declaring 16 June as the International Day of Family Remittances. The resolution was co-sponsored by Algeria, Guatemala, Madagascar. The annual commemoration aims to raise awareness on the value of remittances to the global economy.
According to the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), one in every seven persons worldwide is involved in remittances. The World Bank estimates global remittances to increase from US$ 605 billion in 2021 to US$ 630 billion in 2022. In the Philippines, around 11 million overseas Filipino workers contributed to US$34.9 billion in remittances last year, making the Philippines the fourth largest destination of remittances worldwide.
Because of the significant impact of remittances, UN Resident Coordinator Gustavo Gonzalés urged governments and the private sector to work together in bringing down the cost of remittances so that migrant workers, their families, and countries of origin can maximize the benefits of these resources. According to Gonzalés, one way of doing this is through the increased use and widespread adoption of financial technology and financial literacy.
In the Philippines, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has led various initiatives towards this end, including the development of a Digital Payments Transformation Roadmap, which aims to create an enabling regulatory environment to facilitate the digital transformation of financial services in the country.
This year’s commemoration was attended by members of the diplomatic corps and was jointly organized by the DFA’s Office of the United Nations and International Organizations and the United Nations in the Philippines.
Source: Republic of Philippines Department Of Foreign Affairs