Former OFW In Saudi Arabia Now Earns Twice More With Her Home-Based Business

A former OFW who worked for 14 years as a midwife at the Saudi Arabia Naval Base Hospital now earns more than twice her original income as an OFW when she established a modern birthing home in her hometown in General Santos City.

Dolores Batchanicha put to good use the advanced training she received from the British midwives while working in that Naval Base Hospital in Saudi, on top of her previous local midwifery experience at a local hospital in Davao City to make a difference in their province by offering them modern pregnancy-related services.

She received further technical and financial assistance and business skills from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through the referral of her colleagues in the Integrated Midwives’ Association of the Philippines (IMAP).

Her modern birthing home facility is a better alternative to the traditional “hilot” or home-assisted birthing by traditional attendants. Established in early 2006 in Calumpang, General Santos City, the modern birthing facility has already earned the accreditation of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), and it is also one of the recipients of the PhilHealth Awards for Excellence in Health Services last year 2010.

Dolores Batchanicha was also honored by USAID for such an accomplishment during the celebration of the International Women’s Day held recently. She is not only earning more than twice as much what she used to earn working abroad, but more importantly she is now reunited with her family and regaining those precious moments she missed for the last 14 years.

All these she gained by her humble creativity in making the modern health care for mothers accessible to her local community. May this be an encouragement to our OFWs to save as much money while working abroad, rather than buying all those modern conveniences and excellent food around, and learn as much modern techniques of your trade, and later come home to our beloved beautiful country to put up your own businesses here.

There are a lot of business opportunities awaiting for you here, just identify specific needs of the community, local and foreign, and you will surely reap financial rewards. OFWs can even realize their huge economic influence by grouping together and pooling their resources to come up with several businesses and services like what is being incubated and propounded here, such as:

1) Setting up an OFW BANK financed through the financial contributions as investments of the OFWs to this bank. Common shares will be issued to the contributing OFWs. Go to this page for suggestions on how to fund the project.

2) Putting up Retirement Village(s) for foreign retirees, owned and operated by OFWs and the fees shall be in Dollars, Euros, Yen similar to what they pay in their home countries. The facility shall be applied for PEZA (Philippine Export Zone Authority) accreditation being export-oriented services. Tax exemptions can be availed for the first 5 years if this project is accredited with the BOI (Board of Investments) because it is part of the Investment Priority Plan (IPP) of the Government. The IPP for 2011 will be published soon.

This project can also enjoy free marketing and promotion abroad if this is accredited by the PRA (Philippine Retirement Authority) because this is one of the sunrise industries that is being vigorously encouraged by the Philippine Government. These privileges are now being enjoyed by foreign investors, why should not we take advantage of these tax privileges too! In fact, they are now scheduling the first ever Philippine Retirement & Healthcare Summit in collaboration with the Philippine Retirement Authority and the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP) and the American, Japanese & Korean Chambers of Commerce in the country.

3) Organize OFWs into several cooperatives to be involved in real estate development where other OFW members will be its own clients, be operated as a cooperative and be accredited under the CDA (Cooperative Development Authority) to enjoy full tax exemption as a cooperative.

Spend some time browsing the government websites through the links provided above to know of the awesome privileges that are open to you being a Filipino businessman. Foreign investors are also enjoying the said privileges.

You may not be able to do it by yourself, unlike Dolores Batchanicha, but we can pool together our talents and resources and become even more competitive. That is what the spirit of EDSA is for.

You will surely earn more than you would think of by simply addressing the needs of our countrymen, because people will always be willing to pay you when you have addressed their needs. And I tell you, the market is so huge, and also the local employment we can generate.

The country needs you!

Local Job Vacancies our OFWs From Libya Can Fill In

Here’s one good news for OFWs returning from Libya. Labor officials at home advised the returning OWFs from Libya to keep their mobile phones on for possible job offers at home as there are over 6,000 job vacancies for Philippine-based US firms and local mining companies that Filipino skilled and professional workers can readily fill in.

Labor officials said the profiles and job records of our returning OFWs gathered by the Labor Department will be turned over for possible job matching to more than 30 Philippine-based companies in need for professional and highly-skilled and experienced workers.

The US Embassy will in fact hold a 3-day job fair on March 18-20, 2011 at SM North Edsa, also intended for this job matching. Other job vacancies for the mining industry such as field nurses, engineers, chemists, geologists, accountants, safety engineers and managers, riggers, electricians, welders, surveyors, research specialists, secretaries and construction workers were also identified during the Mining Industry Tripartite Council Forum last Wednesday.

The Labor Department will also solicit and identify more job vacancies during their meeting with the European Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ECCI) and the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCCI). This is part of the government’s reintegration program for returning OFWs not only from Libya but also for those who worked in other countries who wants to return home for good.

Our repatriated OFWs who stay home for good can also avail of the government’s financial grants and loans to start up a business of their own and grow them.

How To Rise and Come Out Stronger From The Libyan Crisis

Per latest reports, around 11,000 OFWs have been evacuated out of Libya while there are still about 34,000 Filipino workers who need to be evacuated to safer territories. The Philippine authorities and representatives in Libya and nearby states are hard pressed to move these number as quickly as possible inspite of the great risk that they have to go through because both the pro and anti Gaddafi forces are spread along these possible escape routes.

To be diplomatically correct, it is best to defer my personal comments about the embattled Libyan leader and how he managed the petroleum dollars which evidently did not become a blessing to his country and his people that's why they have this widespread revolt.

But by reflecting on this current event, it only underlines the necessity for our OFWs to save as much money during good times because you can never tell what would happen next, because who would have thought that Libya would go down in history with this bloody revolt. In fact from what I have gathered, some OFWs have stayed in Libya for more than 10 years and they raised their family there because they found that country to be safe and peaceful. But that was before.

Saving as much money as possible during good times will determine one's welfare and survival when the bad times come. Even the Book of Proverbs tell us to "Go to the ant and consider its ways and be wise! It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest." (source: Prov 6:6-8, NIV 2011)

The storing of provisions in summer and gathering of food at harvest have become so natural to the ants. No need for any commander, supervisor or ruler or nagging wife to pressure them to save as much, they just did it naturally, day in and day out, considering the fact that the ants are creatures of little strength. But what made these ants do that? It's because they are wise in their ways.

Your wisdom, your mind will make you do that. When a person is convinced that saving money during good times will benefit him much more than spending that hard earned money because he deserves it anyway - that person will surely reap the rewards in due time in its perfect season of plentiful harvest.

The number of OFWs in Libya alone has reached around 45,000 or maybe more, and assuming that each one of them saved P5,000 a month for the last 12 months they would have collectively raised P2.7 Billion thereafter. That P2.7B is enough to put up a big bank like an OFW Bank. And that's only from the OFWs in Libya, and just imagine if the other OFWs will join them.

But this is now water under the bridge because the bad times have come. The laptops and sleek TV set and the nice and overpriced house back home and the branded shoes and jackets and sunglasses and pricey electronic gadgets of the kids won't matter anymore when one does not have a source of income anymore. Just turning on the arm's length wide LED TV set and the 2-door stainless refrigerator is an added expense because of the high cost of electricity.

But one should not feel condemned because it's not the end of the road for you. Don't worry if you are left out empty after the last harvest season, just remember that after the harvest season where the fields turn into golden yellow, there always comes the planting season!

During the planting season, what you see is mud everywhere and the terrain is gloomy and it's not enjoyable to walk around, and the rainwater on the ground becomes smelly and just dirty. Life, after losing some golden opportunity for growth, may have much semblance and may feel like the muddy ground after the harvest time when the sky looks dark and dim all day long with no sunshine at all for several months.

But realize my friend that the absence of the bright sunshine and the heavy rain is just perfect to redistribute the nutrients on the ground and fertilize again the farmlands and make it perfectly ready to receive and germinate the seeds to make them sprout and grow them to become your next bountiful harvest in due season.

Therefore, do not fret when God allowed you to miss the last harvest season because what comes next is the planting season for you. And whatever and however you plant will always determine your next harvest. whatever seed you invest into this muddy soil is the seed that will soon give you your next bountiful harvest.

So every season, be it sunshiny or rainy, is an opportunity for you. The planting season is your opportunity to invest. And that investment may not be necessarily setting aside some money, but maybe it's more about making a firm decision as to how much and in what way can you save money on your next opportunity. And that next opportunity is coming.

To those of you who are not directly affected by these recent crisis in the Middle East, don't wait for such turmoil to come before you make up your mind to save some amount and make it your seed money when the next investment opportunity comes.

Just imagine if 500,000 OFWs around the globe decide to save an average of P5,000 per month for 12 months. That one year effort will raise some P30 Billion! Just imagine the huge business that our OFWs can collectively put up with that amount!

Doing it for the next 5 years, our OFWs can raise some P150 Billion! That amount can already create a business empire employing thousands. Just assuming that the P150 Billion will earn at least 9% a year, that's P13.5 Billion annual income.

But if the OFWs won't make up their mind and pursue these things, these will remain a dream, an imagined business, an imaginary income, a potential job and income generator by the thousands. Without any purposeful action on the part of the OFWs, these dreams will remain just an untapped potential even 5 years from now.

And our children will be left condemning the government again for being unable to provide them the jobs they needed at home, and they will again be separated from their families to work abroad - thereby repeating your life's story again in theirs -- simply because we refused to do what is within our means during our our time.

But today is never too late. Tomorrow is still an open opportunity. Let's make up our mind while the opportunity is still great. Kelan pa ba tayo magsimulang kumilos? Kung nasa US$180/barrel na ang petroleum? Pag nagkataon, tig P3,500 na ang isang sakong bigas noon.

OWWA & POEA Boards Now Open For OFW Nominations

May mga magagandang balita po nayon para sa ating mga makabayang OFW! Sa wakas, our OWWA and POEA, for the first time, are now accepting nominations for OFWs or OFW representatives to become part of their respective Board of Trustees, in compliance with the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act.

At least 3 representatives of OFWs shall sit as part of the respective governing board of OWWA and POEA, and these representatives shall come from the land-based sector, sea-based sector, and the women OFW sector.

Suriin niyo land po ng maigi na hindi mga dummy ng mga politiko ang maiupo dahil baka gamitin lang po ang kanilang pwesto para maikampanya ang politiko overseas pagdating ng 2016! I encourage our OFWs na makialam po kayo dahil ginawa ang batas at hakbang na ito para lang po sa kapakanan ng OFWs at nawa maging ganoon nga po dapat ang maisakatuparan. I am not imputting anything on anybody here, I am just encouraging everyone to be wise, be vigilant and be cautious to ensure that indeed this time POEA and OWWA will indeed serve to promote, enhance and protect the welfare of the OFWs. Dahil dati inubos po halos ang $25 contribution po ninyo sa OWWA noong ginamit ng nakaraang nakaupo para pondohan ang libreng Philhealth na pinamudmod sa mga bayan-bayan upang maisulong ang kanyang kandidatura.

The Nominee must be at least 25 years old, able to read and write, and a real migrant worker at the time of nomination OR with at least 3 years actual experience as a migrant worker. Representatives for the 3 sectors may be nominated only by Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) which have an outstanding history in the protection and promotion of the welfare of our OFWs.

To qualify, these nominating NGOs must be registered with the appropriate government agency and should be certified by that agency as "of good standing" and these NGOs must represent either the land-based, sea-based, and women sectors for at least 3 years prior to the submission of their nominee.

The OWWA and POEA shall separately come up with a final list of nominees, with 3 nominees for each sector (land-based, sea-based and women sectors) and the same shall be submitted to the President for consideration and the same shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation.

Once the names are published I encourage our OFWs to voice their opinions about the nominees through the President's website and other popular online discussion boards just to make sure that we are heard by the President, and he will be guided with his choice because the President will have to select and appoint 1 representative for each 3 sectors to become part of the governing boards of OWWA and POEA 30 days after the submission of the list of nominees. The appointed new members of the Boards shall have a term of 3 years, and will be eligible for reappointment for another 3 years if their records serves the OFWs.

So mga mahal kong mga makabayang OFWs I encourage you to actively participate in this process, bago po ito, and this is now your most opportune time to shine and be heard and be well-represented. Mabuhay po Kayo and God bless you!

For further reference, please see the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act and its Implementing Rules and Regulations here and also the related news. For further reference, please check the POEA and OWWA websites.

OFW Remittances Have Soared Past The $17B Mark As of Nov 2010 - BSP

The $17B OFW remittance from Jan-Nov 2010 is around P748-B! It's a very big amount infused to our local economy. (See Source).

If only our OFWs can make it a habit to save just one percent (1%) of whatever money they earn abroad, which is equivalent to P7.48B, they can very easily put up a big OFW BANK (commercial bank) just from their 1% savings! The minimum required cash capital to put up a commercial bank is only around P3-B compared to their 1% savings of P7.48B!

Halimbawa lang po: Kung ang karamihan ng OFW ay kumikita ng average of P30,000 a month, ang 1% savings po ay halagang P300 lamang o kaya P150 sa akinse at P150 sa katapusan. Mas malaki pa po ang ginagastos ng kanilang mga anak sa Pinas sa load ng celfon o kaya panglaro sa online games na iba ang nakikinabang, yung mga dati nang mayayamang malalaking negosyante. Bakit hindi po natin gamitin yun para sa inyong kapakanan this time which will bring long-term economic & financial benefits to you and your loved ones.

Pag 2% ng kanilang kinikita ay itatabi aba that's around P15-B in just one year. E ang BDO ang CASH ASSET po nila noong end of 2009 ay nasa P32 Billion lang po, ibig sabihin kung magtabi lang ang OFWs ng 4% ng kanilang kinita sa buong taon that's P30 Billion at katapat niyo na po kaagad ang BDO, sa isang taong pagtitipid lang po yan. E lalo na po pag ginawa nyo pong regular habit na yan taon-taon naku po mauungusan na po ninyo ang BDO. See http://www.bdo.com.ph/aboutus-... for reference.

Tunay na maging dakila ang mga OFW po natin kapag nagmamay-ari na po sila ng OFW BANK. Ganito po ang layunin ng mga kababayang OFW po natin na nagtutulungang paitaguyod ang pagtayo ng OFW BANK. Patuloy po nating itaguyod ang ganito pong layunin upang mapaangat ang kalagayan at kapakanan ng mga OFW. Mabuhay po kayo.

Maaaring may mga nagdududa po at nag-iisip na baka raket lang po ito, kaya yun po ang iniiwasan natin na maging kaisipan ng mga kababayan natin kaya po we don't encourage any collection or contribution of anything, we do everything voluntarily because I believe that if God has blessed this idea, God will use many people, events and circumstances to make this dream a reality.What we encourage here is for our OFWs to start make saving money a habit. 

Never dream for an OFW BANK if you cannot even learn to save just 1%, 2% or 5% of your income. It takes some kind of self-discipline and determination. Kailangan po minsan marunong tayong tumangging pondohan ang luho ng ating mga anak kung tayo po ay seryoso sa ating pagnanais na mapaunlad ang kanilang buhay at kinabukasan, at upang mas maagang makauwi "for good" ang ating OFWs.

Mabuhay po ang ating OFWs!

Recent Emails Received Through The OFW BANK Incubator Blog

Over the week, may mga natanggap po akong mga email sa pamamagitan po ng ating blogsite using the email address "makabayangpilipino143@yahoo.com", and let me publish them here to keep you abreast of these developments.

I have tried to "hide" their personal details to keep their privacy, unless they will advise me to the contrary. Their emails are as follows:

From DONVERCAS, an electrical/instrumentation instructor and Oil & Gas Operation/maintenance Consultant:

“I was deeply touched with the makabayan ideas of yours and I hope this will happen soonest the better to have OFWBank that all over the world OFW will contribute mabuhay ka makabayangpilipino.

To be exact 30 years na akong OFW and I had a lot of ideas want to share with as well for the benefit of mankind. Regards and thank you.”

From DARYL of qdvc.com:

“sali ako dyan when do we start”

From Michelle Stone of pho_art:

“Hi there!!! Just want to register to receive “newsletters” if possible…Thanks a lot & God bless!!!”

From Andy P. of a known bank in New Zealand:

“Manigong Bagong Taon sa iyo, sa iyong pamilya at sa wider community na iyong kinapapalooban!

I’ll focus on clarifying your requirements.  Basically, the site would be some sort of a forum/blog website with a touch of a social-media network engine (ala facebook).    Some of the system/applications that would be built unto the site resembles that of a “virtual bank” where members would make deposit and withdrawal so as to mimic the updates on their actual savings or pledged capitals.   All updates by its members are gathered real-time by the system and then publish the updates on a graphical form (something like a stakeholder report or financial statement).   I could see the big picture and we could come up with that kind of web application.   Though, there may be some technical limitations if hosted on a free site domain such as blogspot or twitter.   A work-around is to host the other applications in some other domain sites and integrate it via URL on the main forum site and blog site.   I’ve now started to integrate a forum unto a blog site in one of the free domains and hopefully be able to present it to you in the coming weeks.

As for my suggestions on the site building, we could also incorporate an auto-email subscription facility such that all members will be sent an email on regular updates, monthly report and forum topics.   This will somehow encourage the members to get involved in the process and promote the site to their friends and relatives.   The forum application could facilitate posting from its members either via online or via email since replying via email would be an easier way to voice their opinion.  In addition, we could promote the site further by adding facilities for integration unto the wider social media networks such as facebook, twitter, linkedin, Friendster, etc…  I think most of the OFWs would have an account on at least one of these social media channels.   Please let me know your thoughts on this.

As for the blog site, since you are teaching financial literacy, I would also suggest if
we could post topics about financial literacy.   This would help a lot of the OFWs and their families how to be good stewards of the blessings that they receive.  We could post practical tips on how to save money and reduce expenses in our daily life.   Those saving tips would somehow fast track their way to greater savings.    It’s good that you had already started posting some of the business ideas that the proposed “OFW Bank” could explore.   Financial literacy is a very sensitive topic and is not even included in the current Philippine educational system.   Maybe this topic would help our OFW kababayans to start thinking how they are currently managing their money in general and eventually realize that they should start doing something now and change for the better.

I have a number of idea on the business plan but I will have to reserve it for future discussions.    Ika nga eh, focus muna ako on the task-at-hand which is to build the website and the related applications and functionality on it.

Ako po ay nalulugod na malaman na kayo ay isang kapanalig sa pananampalataya.  Kami po ng aking maybahay ay Kristiyano ding katulad nyo.   Maganda ang simulain ng iyong ministeryo dyan sa atin at hangad ko ang tagumpay ng iyong mga activities at nawa ay patuloy na maging kalugod-lugod yaon sa harapan ng ating Panginoon. To God be the Glory! God Bless”

NOTE:

Mr. Andy P. has volunteered to help us in this effort by selflessly sharing us his expertise in banking and programming. Let’s keep him in our prayers.

Mr. Andy P., patuloy po kayong pagpalain ng Panginoon diyan sa inyong paghahanapbuhay sa New Zealand, at marami pong salamat sa inyong tulong at creative ideas, napupunan niyo po ang aking mga kakulangan at limitasyon.

All for the greater glory of God and the upliftment of the lives of our People! -- pilipino

From Chriz of Abu Dhabi, RE: http://www.aquaculture-israel.com/index.html...

“When I go home this February, my plan is to start up the business I told you I will first start with a simple one, when it thrives, I’l make sure it will prosper, just I’ve said while working here in the middle East, eto ang nagbukas sa atin na we can and we should do it, kahit di ka humingi ng tulong sa gobyerno if at first you could go underground do it first, please see attached pictures of my business plan.  I’ll be starting with lobster production as food.  See the idea here is first purchase breeders, one breeder can lay eggs from 100 up to 1000, from this brood stock you can produce more and eventually can generate lots of opportunities to venture,

1. Breeding

2. Food Production ( Fishball production – lobster as the main ingredient )

3. Carinderia which you can use the lobster as a special menu

4. Create employment

5. Technology transfer to other Filipino OFW’s who would want to join this business venture ( If you have friends who buys my idea please let me know because by February I’ll be getting first around 3 breeders which will be stocked for breeding in an aquarium, ones it lays eggs I’ll go on fish pond production,  I’ll also start a vermiculture venture (earthworms) which I will be using as food for the lobsters.

If we could form a group the better para mas malaki ung mahihiram natin, Nasa akin na lahat ng modules which I will be needing for this undertaking, just let me know if you happen to know some of your friends who may want to join us, lets create a special facebook account where we could chat and share ideas. Wala naman mawawala if we have the guts and determination to succeed and eventually go back to our beloved country to achieve our goals and that is to uplift oneself and help others.

http://www.sulit.com.ph/index.php/view+classifieds/id/2435725/Australia+Red+Claw+Freshwater+Lobster

Maraming salamat and advance happy new year kabayang Nicholas.  There will be lots of opportunities with this project, it could invade exportation basta tama yung mga taong magtutulungan to push thru with this project. Happy New Year!!!”

NOTE:

For those of you who are interested to keep in touch with Chriz about his business ideas, feel free to contact him thru his email (c.rimando@epiuae.ae) -- pilipino

Save Money By Watching Out Your Spending Habit First!

The following article about saving money is a very sensitive topic and this is not for the faint of heart and onion skinned, more so when we touch about the common spending habit of most. At least I have warned you. But keep on reading as it might just also wake up your senses.

SAVING MONEY IS AN OLD IDEA

Saving money is not new to us because since the time when we were little kids our parents have already taught us how to save money. And now that we are grown ups and have become fathers and mothers to our kids, we have been urging our children to save money too.

But have we become good at saving money? If we are good at it, then how come we have not saved much? Well, one might argue that how can we save money if our income is very limited? 

SAVING MONEY....PANG-MAYAMAN LANG BA?

But do you know that saving money is not only for those who are earning much? In fact, saving money is more necessary for those who earn little! 

Ang pag-iimpok ng pera ay hindi para lamang sa mga may malaking kinikita. Kundi sa katunayan, mas lalong kinakailangan na mag-impok ang mga manggagawang mas kakaunti ang kinikita.

Ngunit paano? Papaanong makapag-impok ang isang manggagawang maliit ang kinikita, na kadalasan ay kulang pa ang kinikita kaysa kanyang mga gastusin at iba pang pangangailangan? 

CAN THE LOW-INCOME EARNER STILL SAVE MONEY?

Is saving money still possible for people with low income? For people whose income is not even enough to cover their expenses?
Is it possible and doable? Yes! But is it easy? No! It takes some amount of self discipline to be able to save money.

Saving money is very doable, but it is not easy. In fact some people who are well off in life still find it hard to save money. Most people are able to save something for a while but the habit of saving is not sustained and they end up spending again everything that they earn including their savings.

WATCH YOUR SPENDING HABIT

Each one has his own spending habit, at kadalasan ay ganito po ang nangyayari: Kahit malayo pa ang araw ng sahod, marami na tayong mga iniisip na bibilhin - mga bagay na paggagastusan. At may mga tao na hindi kinakayang maghintay pa ng akinse o katapusan ng buwan upang gumastos. 

Oo nga naman napakadaling ikaskas ang credit card sa payment counter sa mga mall, tinataon pa naman na may laging sale tuwing sahuran.

Those who are bent into doing this feel that they have the "right to spend" on anything that they like because anyway it is their money. 

WHAT IS YOUR SAVINGS HABIT?

Ang tao, ewan ko ba kung bakit habang may hawak na pera ay parang di mapakali at laging nag-iisip kung ano kaya ang kanyang bibilhin, marami siyang naaalalang mga kulang sa kanyang katawan at mga kulang na bagay sa bahay at hindi niya iniisip na magtipid at magtabi dahil parang hindi pa kinakailangan dahil madami pang hawak na pera.

Pag may hawak na pera kaagad naaalala ng tao na luma na pala ang kanyang sapatos at belt, na medyo matagal-tagal na siyang hindi nakapag-parlor at facial treatment, na kelangan nga pala niyang magpa-full body massage. O kaya naman naalala niya na medyo luma na ang kanyang TV set at LED na ang uso ngayon, o kaya ay kelangan na niyang mapalitan ang kanyang cellphone kasi touch screen na ang uso ngayon kahit kung tutuusin ay pareho namang gumagana pa ng maayos.

At may mga masasarap na pagkaing gusto pa niyang matikman sa mga kilalang restaurant kahit medyo may kamahalan, at least meron siyang maidagdag na mga photo sa Facebook.

Magsisimula lamang siyang mag-isip na magtipid kapag kakaunti na lamang ang natitirang hawak na pera. They will only start saving when there is almost nothing left to save. Majority of Filipinos follow this common money management formula:

                                             INCOME - EXPENSES = SAVINGS 

Common as it is but not necessarily ideal. The formula indicates that their priority is their expenses, not their savings - na sila ay makapagtatabi lamang kapag may natira pa sa budget pagkatapos ng mga gastusin. Medyo madami po kasing pinaggagastusan - load sa cellphone, online game ni Junior, at marami pang mga gastusin dahil pag may bagong electronic gadget ang anak ng kapitbahay ay gusto na rin makipantay ng mga anak kaya nagkakanda-kuba na ang mga magulang sa kaka-abroad masuportahan lamang ang luho ng mga bata, na para bang yun lamang ang natitirang paraan upang makabawi at mapunan nila ang pangungulila ng kanilang mga anak sa kanilang mga magulang.

THE COMMON ANTIDOTE

At ang nakikitang solusyon ay gumawa ng paraan upang tumaas ang kinikita o sahod para baka sakaling may matira at baka sakaling may maitabing halaga. But the problem is when their income goes up, their expenses also go up -- di na makatulog pag walang aircon pero dati solve na sa electric fan (naka number 2 o 3 nga lang); di na kontento sa free TV signal at gusto naka cable na kaya wala na tuloy panahon na mag-review ng lessons; ang mga anak ibang notebook na ang gusto at hindi na yung gawa sa papel, at nagagalit pa kapag di naka mobile broadband connection.

Ang anak na high school o kolehiyo ay ayaw nang mag-LRT dahil siksikan daw, gusto taxi na lang papunta sa school at pauwi. Sadyang mahirap nga makapag-ipon kapag ganoon ang kalagayan. That's why many OFWs cannot save much because even if they earn a lot, they and/or their family also spend a lot, that's why they end up with this sad situation. 

Their money chain looks like this: BIG INCOME minus BIG EXPENSES euqals NOTHING LEFT (DEFICIT sometimes). The solution? Find another job with a higher salary, abroad. Where else? And it has become an endless cycle.

IS THERE ANY HOPE?

Some people have tried this formula: BIG INCOME minus REDUCED EXPENSES equals SMALL SAVINGS. At least this formula is better than the first, but they still work hard to earn bigger income and they try to reduce the expenses to manageable levels: Tuwing sabado at linggo na lang ang online game ni Junior sa computer shop; taxi papunta ng school pero MRT na pauwi; bawas-bawasan ang tawag para makatipid sa load, etc.

Pero hanggang kelan kakayanin ang pagbabawas ng gastos o cost cutting? Dahil kadalasan pag napansin na medyo malaki na ng konti ang naiipon ay humihirit na naman ang kagustuhang gumastos. Kaya ang nangyayari pag may ipon na nauuso na ang big family reunion, bakasyon sa Boracay for 7 days, o kaya pasyal sa Hongkong para naman maiba...at malaman-laman mo na lang paubos na rin pala ang perang naitabi.

Ngunit may nakahanda tayong linya para diyan, at ganito kadalasan ang sinasabi: "At least masaya naman ang mga bata, iba na rin kasi yung makapunta rin sila ng ibang bansa." Then you end up having good memories and nice pictures na pang Facebook, and leave your family and work abroad again. 

May pagkakahawig ba ang kwento ng buhay mo sa mga inilarawan dito? Nais mo bang mabago ito? Do not get discouraged because you can change your current situation if you will just give some thought and some sense to the way you spend your money.

How? Well, watch for the next article. It might just help you. Suffice it to say that you can start saving money by watching out your spending habit first!

One might wonder why I am posting this article and if is has something to do with our effort for the establishment of an OFW BANK. It has some direct and indirect relation to that, because your future investments to that OFW BANK should come from your savings, and it is my great hope that this article and any other related succeeding articles might greatly help change our attitude and habits towards savings. 

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