The United Nations celebrates the International Day of Family Remittances on June 16 as a way of recognizing the impact made by individuals who remit money back home to family. Earlier this year, then-Leyte second district Rep. Henry Ong, who chaired the House Committee on Banks and Financial Intermediaries, said remittances broke records in December 2018 with reports showing a total $3.2 billion (around P167 billion) entered the country that month alone.
“Through this observance, the United Nations aims to bring greater awareness of the impact that these contributions have on millions of households, but also on communities, countries, and entire regions,” the international organization said on their website. “The day also calls upon governments, private sector entities, as well as civil society to find ways that can maximize the impact of remittances through individual and/or collective action.”
According to the UN, there were 244 million people living outside their country of origin last year, with most of them tagged as “economic migrants.”
“Most migrants work difficult and often dangerous jobs at the low end of the international economy in order to support those who remain at home,” the UN noted.
According to a recent report by Chinese news agency Xinhua, Philippine remittances in March of this year increased by 6.4 percent with around $2.8 billion entering the country from overseas, up from the $2.6 billion in 2018.
Total first quarter remittances totaled $8.1 billion, up from the $7.8 billion remitted during the same period last year./WDJ