BSP urges OFWs to use banks for remittances
BACOLOD CITY — Having a fundamentally sound and better capitalized banking system, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas urges the Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) to send their remittances through local banks.
BSP officials here for a public information campaign told representatives of government agencies in a round table discussion to help in their campaign for people to have trust and confidence in the banking system to lure especially the OFWs to send remittances through banks.
To complement the campaign, BSP together with country’s major banks is launching early next year a program catered especially to OFWs where no maintaining balance and no opening balance required in opening an account where OFWs may send their remittances to families here.
According to BSP records, OFW remittances from January to August this year reached $11.3-billion with 3.7 percent growth rate. The remittances are expected to reach $17.1-billion with a 4.0 percent growth at the end of the year.
Despite the world economic crisis, the country’s balance of payment remains in surplus as supported by a resilient Overseas Filipinos’ remittances due to steady deployment of workforce, access to formal channels and the effect of hiring programs of the government by the host countries.
The Gross Domestic Product also grows by 1.5 percent in the second quarter of 2009 attributed mainly to sustained remittance flow and decline in inflation.
Gross Regional Domestic Product (at constant prices) growth for Western Visayas is 4.4 percent in 2007-2008 while regional inflation in October 2009 is at 1.3 percent.
The Public Information Campaign of the BSP forms part of its advocacy to increase public awareness on its role in the country’s economic development and understanding of current economic issues. (PIA/EAD)
