Each qualifying recipient under the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration’s ‘Balik-Pinas, Balik-Hanapbuhay’ Program can receive as much as P20,000 in financial assistance — on top of separate aid covering medical and burial needs, according to Reintegration Unit head Alma Chavente.
Over 100 overseas Filipino workers in Nueva Vizcaya have already collected funds under the program, which is aimed at distressed and repatriated OFWs looking to restart their livelihoods after returning home.
The cash assistance does not come without conditions. Beneficiaries are required to complete an Entrepreneurial Development Training conducted by the Department of Trade and Industry before any funds are released — a step Chavente described as essential to preparing recipients to manage their chosen business.
Dayline Caballes, 32, from Villaverde, was among those who went through the process and received the assistance.
“Nagpapasalamat po ako sa tulong ng ating gobyerno dahil maaasahan ang mga programa para sa mga OFW. Dahil dito, maaari ko nang simulan ang aking napiling negosyo sa aming lugar,” she said.
Chavente said OWWA plans to continue extending the same support to OFWs across Nueva Vizcaya and the Cagayan Valley, with the DTI training requirement remaining a fixed part of the process before financial aid is disbursed.
