Philippine labor migration has constantly grown for the past 40 years the country. In 2015, 1.8 million Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) left the country to work in various destinations all over the world. OFWs, along with other Overseas Filipinos (OFs), sent home a total of US$25.6 billion in cash remittances that year (BSP). If taking into account remittances sent through both formal and non-formal sectors, remittances are estimated to reach US$29.7 billion (WB), which is around 10% of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

When properly managed, labor migration has high development potential for migrants, their communities, the countries of origin and destination, and for employers. An important tool in the formulation of policies for an orderly and well-managed migration is a sound and efficient monitoring database system of migration and remittance trends. This Factbook conveniently gathers and presents in one place labor migration data from various sources so that it is readily accessible for further analysis of the Philippine labor migration situation and challenges, and is produced for the information needs of labor and employment policymakers. It covers time-series data on Philippine labor migration and remittances for the period 2005-2015 (subject to data availability and comparability). Specifically, it covers data on the profile of OFWs (age, sex, region of origin), deployment (by type, region and country of destination, occupation and industry), magnitude of irregular migration, and remittances.

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Title: Philippine Labor Migration Factbook 2016
Researcher: Paulina Kim C. Pacete