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By Carolina Taborga, Contributor
Remittances sent by Filipino migrants in Italy
promote gender-sensitive local rural community development in the
Philippines and support capacity-building activities with migrant
associations to improve the living conditions of Filipino migrants
in Italy.
Thus concludes the case study Gender,
Remittances and Local Rural Development: The case of Filipino
migration to Italy, recently published by the United Nations (UN)
agencies UN-International Research and Training Institute for the
Advancement of Women (UN-INSTRAW) and International Fund for
Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the Italy-based migrant service
group Filipino Women’s Council (FWC).
Research was carried out in Rome, Italy and in
selected rural communities in Pampanga, Batangas, Ilocos Sur,
Oriental Mindoro and Tarlac in the Philippines. Qualitative data was
collected in two round-table sessions and 132 in-depth personal
interviews with 61 migrants in Rome and 71 members of migrant
households in the Philippines.
The high feminization of migration from the
Philippines was one of the reasons that the country was selected for
a case study of the impacts of women’s migration. Italy is the
sixth most popular destination country among Filipino migrants
(after Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan and the United Arab
Emirates). It also hosts the largest number of Filipino migrants
within Europe (followed by Spain, Greece and Austria).
According to the Commission of Filipinos
Overseas, 128,080 Filipinos reside in Italy as of 2006.
“The Filipino community in Italy is more
feminized than any other migrant group and is highly concentrated in
the domestic service sector, characterized by its intense demand for
foreign female labor. In cities like Rome and Milan, female Filipino
migrants account for up to 70 percent of all Filipino migrants,”
stated Carolina Taborga, Social Affairs Officer at UN-INSTRAW.
Of the $12.8 billion Filipino migrants sent back
to the Philippines in 2005, $44 million were sent from Italy, making
it the fourth largest source of OFW remittances. According to the
collective UN-INSTRAW, IFAD and FWC study, Filipino women in Italy
send remittances back home more regularly than their male
counterparts.
In Rome, 85.3 percent of women and 64.7 percent
of men stated that they send regular remittances to the Philippines
each month. In general, regular remittances involved sending fixed
amounts of money, averaging between 300 and 400 euros per month,
representing roughly half of the minimum salary of 600 euros a month
earned by Filipino migrants.
For most recipient households, these monthly
transfers act as a kind of salary, representing between 25 and 50
percent of total household income, and used for basic consumption
(food, clothes, electricity, etc.), education and health needs.
Regular remittances are used to pay a caretaker, a domestic worker
or a person in charge of dependent persons in the migrant women’s
household.
“While women privilege investment in their
children, particularly in education, men are inclined to invest in
consumption goods, assets or , property. However, if women succeed
in covering basic consumption needs, education and health, they tend
to invest in a house or in land for agriculture. As former tenants
become land owners, these farmers are more willing to invest in
technology for improving both the quantity and the quality of their
harvests and for diversifying the types of products they
cultivate,” pointed out Maria Hartl, IFAD’s technical adviser in
gender and social equity.
When the migrant is married with children,
remittances will usually be sent to the spouse. If both adults of
the married couple go abroad, remittances are generally sent to the
eldest child to administer, or to the children’s temporary
guardian. This is also the case with migrant single mother. When the
migrant has a choice, women are actually often chosen over men to
receive and manage regular household remittances.
According to the migrants and household members
interviewed, the reasons behind this trend are related to women’s
traditional role as caregivers and domestic administrators in the
Philippines and their consequent in-depth knowledge of the
household’s basic needs. Women are perceived as “thriftier”
and more responsible when handling money intended to benefit the
household as a whole.
The study further demonstrated that migration
and remittances have had a number of positive impacts on gender
equality in the Philippines. First of all, migration seems to have
economically empowered many women, as it has increased and
diversified the employment opportunities available to them.
“Some women in this study were able to
transition from unpaid subsistence agricultural work to the
administration of small businesses, which has led to changes in
their power and status in their households and communities of
origin. Likewise, the investment of remittances in children’s
studies has increased their levels of educational attainment,
particularly among the daughters of migrants, opening up new
opportunities for future generations of women,” stressed Carolina
Taborga.
Direct participation of members of the
Italy-based nongovernment organization FWC in collecting and
validating data was needed to support the capacity building
activities of Filipino migrant associations. FCW participants were
able to build on prior knowledge in this area, understand how the
research could enrich the organizations’ future strategy, and
raise awareness about the potential of remittance-based development
among Filipino migrants and their families.
“With the insight we have gained from having
participated in this process, it is now imperative that Filipino
migrant associations are supported both financially and technically
in the proposals they have developed to promote positive change and
overcome current challenges to local/community development,”
stated FWC’s Charito Basa.
The tripartite study points to a need to
increase awareness among Filipino migrants on available alternatives
in sending remittances and their potential for promoting rural
development in their communities of origin.
The researchers suggested more activities like
public hearings, discussions, seminars and training activities,
among others, on remittance-based development in the Philippines and
how to work with financial institutions to develop services
specially suited for women migrants, remitters and recipients.
Carolina Taborga is the officer-in-charge of UN-INSTRAW.
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