Graduates who once relied on government scholarships to finish college are now getting help clearing the next hurdle in their careers. A group of licensed recruitment agencies has stepped in to fund board examination review for a batch of Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) scholars, marking the first corporate social responsibility (CSR) tie-up between the agency and the private-sector coalition known as PRIME Alliance.
The beneficiaries were chosen from OWWA’s roster of scholarship graduates, among them Magna Cum Laude and Cum Laude honorees drawn from colleges and universities across the National Capital Region. The support is meant to prepare them for the licensure tests that stand between their diplomas and the start of their professional lives.
PRIME Alliance, which brings together recruitment agencies licensed by the Department of Migrant Workers and advocates for fair and ethical hiring, launched the review assistance as its first CSR initiative with OWWA. An awarding ceremony was held July 30 at the Seafarers’ Welfare Center.
OWWA Administrator Patricia Yvonne “PY” M. Caunan framed the arrangement as proof that public institutions and a conscientious private sector can widen the paths available to families of overseas Filipino workers.
“Kapag nagkakaisa ang gobyerno at ang responsableng pribadong sektor, mas marami tayong nagagawa para sa kinabukasan ng ating mga kababayan. Mula sa pagtulong ng OWWA sa ating mga iskolar na makapagtapos ng kolehiyo hanggang sa suporta ng PRIME Alliance sa kanilang paghahanda para sa board examinations, ipinapakita ng partnership na ito na ang pangarap ng isang anak ng OFW ay pangarap nating lahat,” she said.
Caunan thanked the coalition for selecting OWWA scholar-achievers as the recipients of its debut CSR partnership with the agency, saying the effort shows how responsible recruitment firms can help shape the next wave of professionals emerging from OFW households.
The agency said it continues to broaden what it offers migrant workers and their dependents through education grants, lifelong learning, skills training, and reintegration programs, while inviting additional private partners to join in building better prospects for OFW children.
Underpinning the initiative is OWWA’s Alagang OWWA framework, which holds that gains for migrant-worker families come through the combined efforts of government, business, and society at large.
