The Trabaho party-list has lined up behind a push to pump more money into programs that shield overseas Filipino workers, backing a P1 billion increase the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) is seeking for its social protection efforts in the 2027 national budget.
Rep. Johanne Bautista, who represents the group, said the additional funding would keep protection and assistance flowing to Filipinos abroad, especially when crises hit. The money would go to the AKSYON Fund, which bankrolls medical, financial, and humanitarian aid for OFWs in distress. Under the 2027 National Expenditure Program, the fund sits at P2 billion, unchanged from this year’s level, according to Rappler.
Bautista also pressed for restoring the Emergency Repatriation Fund (ERF) to at least P1.2 billion after the draft budget trimmed it to roughly P900 million, and she endorsed OWWA’s separate request for an added P575 million to broaden its assistance.
“I also manifest my strong support for the return of at least the minimum of 1.2 billion ng ERF po at kung maaari pa po ay the few hundred million na nire-request po ng OWWA dahil nakikita naman po natin diretso naman po sa tao ang pinupuntahan ng mga pondong yan,” Bautista said.
She added that aid should also reach Filipinos returning home for reasons other than rescue and forced repatriation.
The lawmaker’s endorsement comes as the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) grapples with drained reserves. Administrator Atty. Patricia Yvonne Caunan told the House Committee on Appropriations that the agency had exhausted its continuing funds from 2025 along with the P1.2 billion ERF, leaving it heavily dependent on P700 million in supplemental money. BusinessWorld reported that P1.7 billion had already been spent returning Filipinos affected by the US-Iran war, on top of that supplemental sum.
The funds have already moved large numbers of workers. OWWA’s count through July 31 put the number of OFWs helped by the ERF at roughly 139,688, with another 240,000 to 250,000 expected to be assisted before the year ends.
Within the proposed P7.2 trillion national program, about P7.267 billion is earmarked for the DMW’s Office of the Secretary, while OWWA — an agency under the department — is set to receive P4.349 billion.
