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Press Release: |
07 November 2005
Overseas Pinoys Hike Remittances By 28 % --BSP
Overseas Filipinos' dollar remittances to the Philippines have remained robust in the first eight months of 2005, the Bangko Sentral Ng Pilipinas (BSP) said in a recent report.
The BSP said total remittances coursed through banks totaled US$ 7 billion for the eight-month period January to August this year, up by 28 percent from the US$ 5.5 billion corresponding to the same period last year.
The total for August alone reached US$ 954 million. But the figure is expected to peak in the holiday season yet, as overseas Filipinos begin to send more amounts to their loved ones back home for Christmas and New Year celebrations.
Filipinos in the United States, Saudi Arabia, Italy, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore continued to account for the highest remittance levels.
The BSP attributes the surge in remittances to vigorous marketing strategies adopted by commercial banks, such as enhanced money transfer services, more remittance centers, and tie-ups with foreign financial institutions and collection agents.
These strategies, the BSP noted, have succeeded in encouraging overseas workers to increasingly utilize banking channels in transferring funds to their beneficiaries.
Contributing also to the rise in remittances is the increase in the number of deployed Filipino workers overseas during the first eight months of 2005.
Based on data released by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, the total number of deployed workers rose by 1.6 percent to 660,726, following intense efforts by the Philippine government and its private sector partners to provide skills-enhancement and other development programs.
At the same time, foreign service posts have accelerated their campaign for higher remittances from Filipino communities overseas, consistent with President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's call for a $20-dollar increase in monthly remittances from each Filipino remitter in order to draw more cash into the Philippine banking system.
Reacting to this development, Consul General Maria Rowena Mendoza Sanchez of the Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco lauded the positive response of the Filipino-American community to the President's call.
"We thank the community for taking up the challenge by giving more to their families back home. This is a gesture that not only pleases their relatives, but also undoubtedly boosts a critical component of the country's economic output," she said.
For more detailed report on the matter, the public is advised to log-on to www.bsp.gov.ph/news/2005.
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