As many Overseas-Filipino organizations are saying, “the Overseas-Filipino workers (OFWs) and the Filipino immigrants to the United States, Canada and other third countries continue to keep afloat the Philippine government, which is said to be a very-corrupt administration. Yes, the Arroyo Administration is not only the most-dishonest government in the history of the Philippines but it has also the distinction of making the Philippines one of the most-corrupt nations on Earth.

And the often-untold sacrifices of the unsung Overseas-Filipino “BalikBayani” workers and their families continue. Many of these Overseas Filipinos, especially the Filipino woman workers, continue to suffer. And yet, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her subordinates continue to be indifferent actually to the plight of the the OFWs. Whatever good things the Arroyo Administration touts happen only and often in press releases. Some of their stories are related in the Women's section, as per these hyperlinks:

The Exploitation of Filipino Woman Workers by the Arroyo Dispensation Continues

Mother’s Day Is Also Motherland’s Day: Remembering Countless Filipino Mothers Who Toil Abroad

Two Woman OFWs in Kuwait Terminated for Complaining Against Unfair Labor Practices

Are Prostitutes the Cheapest “Commodities” (sic) in the Philippines? (Part I)--As Updated

KGS Calls for Independent Probes on Filipina's Death Inside Saudi Police Station and Rape of Nurses

Update on Campaign to Save Filipina from Kuwait Death Row

More Good and Bad News About Overseas-Filipino Woman Workers

A Real Story About a Filipino "Desperate Housemaid (sic)"

Ms. Moonglow’s Sad Stories and News Briefs About OFWs, Especially Filipino Maids

The Monumental Modern-day Filipino Holocaust

Whatever Happened to Dinia Baliton, a Filipino Maid in Switzerland?

The Continued Abuse of Filipino Maids

Does the World Care About Japan’s Modern-day "Comfort Women"?

The Woman Leaders of the Philippines Must Protect their Fellow Women

H ere is one of the latest press releases issued by the Philippine Embassy in Washington, DC, that concerns the OFWs and the Overseas Filipinos:

QUOTE. The deployment of Filipino workers abroad increased during the first 11 months of 2008, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said recently.

In its press report, BSP cited the preliminary data from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) indicating that during the first 11 months of 2008 the number of Filipinos deployed abroad increased considerably by 24.4-percent to 1,221,829 from 982,286 a year ago.

The POEA data further showed that 90-percent of newly-hired OFWs in the first 10 months of 2008 consisted of professionals and skilled workers. The deployment was concentrated in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, and Hong Kong.

The continuing global economic slowdown is expected to decelerate the deployment of more OFWs in the coming months.

However, BSP said that the strong labor demand in Canada, Bulgaria, Australia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar is expected to mitigate the decline in hiring of OFWs.

"The Philippine government has signed Memoranda of agreement with various provinces of Canada and with Qatar and is also in negotiations with South Australia for possible employment opportunities for Filipino skilled labor," said the BSP.

Also, the Department of Labor and Employment through its overseas-labor offices in more than 30 strategic host destinations worldwide, has continued to conduct marketing missions and employment facilitation programs to widen the productive opportunities for Filipino workers both in the local and global fronts.

Meanwhile, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has assigned all Cabinet members to handle emergency and livelihood programs over and above agency projects in place to lessen the impact of the global economic meltdown on the Filipinos including OFWs earlier this year.

As part of this effort a special program for OFWs who lost their jobs as a result of the economic meltdown, will be mapped out. UNQUOTE. # # #