A total of 172 distressed overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) were granted assistance worth ₱4.905 million through the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) as part of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s push to bring essential services closer to Filipinos abroad and their families.
The aid was distributed on September 13 under the nationwide initiative Handog ng Pangulo: Serbisyong Sapat para sa Lahat. Of the beneficiaries, 59 OFWs received support through the DMW AKSYON Fund, while 113 were granted livelihood packages under the Livelihood Program for OFW Reintegration (LPOR).
Beyond direct OFW assistance, thousands of Ilocos Sur residents also benefited from government services rolled out during the program. Among them were 760 recipients of DENR’s seedling turnover, 150 farmers who received agricultural support from the Department of Agriculture, 48 livelihood beneficiaries from DOLE, and 500 PhilHealth YAKAP registrants. TESDA likewise trained 24 indigenous people in dressmaking, while DTI’s Diskwento Caravan and KADIWA brought affordable goods to local communities.
The effort was spearheaded by the Office of the President in partnership with several agencies, with Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo J. Cacdac leading the distribution alongside Undersecretary Bernard P. Olalia, Assistant Secretary Jerome A. Alcantara, Regional Director Christian Rey Sison, and Ilocos Sur Governor Jeremias Singson.
