Table: 2008 Growth in OFW Deployments and Projected 2009 Economic Growth in Top 20
Destination Countries of Overseas Filipinos of Temporary and lrregular Status
REGION
COUNTRY
'
WORLD TOTAL
1. SAUDIARABIA
2, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
3. UNITED STATES
4, MAI.AYSIA
5. QATAR
6. KUWAIT
7. SINGAPORE
8. HONGKONG
9. UNITED KlilGDOil
Temporary and
lrregular
Growth in
Deployments
GDP Growth (%,
Workers
(%, 2007-2008)
2009 estimate)
5,033,993
14.7
.1.3
1,066,051
15.7
528,411
60.6
-14.4
-0.9
-0.6
-2.8
-3.5
284,753
218,965
195,543
139,708
126,616
-38
Prolected
49.9
4.9
18
-15.7
-10
-1.1
119,066
32.4
4.5
112,381
-2.3
4.1
95,594
74,528
26.7
-13.3
4.4
71,653
3.8
69,029
52,309
44,618
-26.1
-6.2
40.5
-2.5
32.1
2.6
42,1U
37
FRAilCE
40,026
TSRAEL
35,879
28.4
-29
GREECE
AUSTRALIA
29,252
28,455
10.
ITALY
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
KOREA (South)
TAIWAN
JAPAN
CANADA
BAHRAIN
OMAN
SUB.TOTAL
-4
-7.5
3
-3
-1.7
u
-0.2
68.1
-1.4
3,375,001
Sources: Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) for temporary and irregular workers, Philippine Overseas
EmploymentAdministration (POEA)for growth in deployments, lntemational Monetary Fund (lMF)
World Economic OutlookApril49 for 2009 growth estimates
There are already indications of adverse impacts on Filipino migrants. As of
June 2009, the NEDA identified various tlpes of OFWs vulnerable due to the financial
crisis. This includes 129,000 working in the US under temporary working visas, 130,000
seafarers on luxury cruise ships, 268,000 factory workers in South Korea, Taiwan and
Macau, and 48,000 household service workers in Singapore, Macau and Hongkong.
The OWWA inAugust 2009 estimated that there were 6,931 OFWs displaced from
322 companies in 16 countries as of 30 June 2009 - the biggest number of which was
accounted for by 4,428 workers from 93 companies in Taiwan. However it also said that it
did not have any information on the number of these assisted, notwithstanding earlier
declarations that it was preparing options for workers displaced by the global crisis. The
DOLE's Bureau of Labor and Employment Statistics (BLES) meanwhile reported that
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