THE Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) believes remittances from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) will enjoy a sharp increase come 2023.
In a television interview, DMW Secretary Susan Ople yesterday said she is optimistic there will be a spike in OFW remittances as early as the first quarter of next year.
“I think we are looking at a sharp increase in remittances by (the) 1st quarter of 2023,” said Ople.
“Unless any cataclysmic event occurs, we are looking at perhaps… May I be optimistic? Possibly a doubling of remittances,” she added.
Last month, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported that OFW remittances have reached $3.15 billion in September, much higher compared to the $3.03 billion remittances recorded a year ago.
According to Ople, her optimism comes from the recent reopening of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) market.
“The Saudi market is the biggest labor destination for OFWs,” she said.
She also noted that new labor markets in Europe are also set to open soon.
“We will be opening new labor markets in Europe, particularly Portugal, Romania, Hungary,” said the official.
She said the acute labor shortage prevailing in Europe may work to the advantage of OFWs.
“What I’m seeing now is an acute labor shortage in European countries due to young people migrating, while some don’t want to work for some occupations,” Ople said.
