THE Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration (OWWA) is studying the possibility of setting up a pension fund for workers abroad to help them receive monetary assistance upon retirement.

OWWA Administrator Marianito Roque said the agency is currently studying if it can venture into offering a pension fund for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who wish to stay in the country after working abroad.

Roque said this plan was in keeping with the Labor Day speech of President Arroyo, where she ordered the agency to study if OWWA can use part of its budget for pension.

“I don’t want to go into details yet. We’re studying it and we will submit our report [to the President] before year-end,” the OWWA chief said during a press briefing together with Microsoft Philippines in Makati City Tuesday.

He added that some OFWs have been requesting for such service in preparation for their retirement, since they are most likely to be jobless when they come home to the Philippines.

“They want to be given a decent support once they retire. So while they still have money, they want to contribute [to that],” said Roque.

By year-end, OWWA’s total fund is expected to reach P10 billion, according to him.

Established as a trust fund for OFWs, the agency is being funded by the $25 membership fee from the country’s 8 million overseas workers. The membership is renewable every two years.

Roque said the agency can venture into offering a pension fund since its mandate covers “other” services.

He added that OFWs have been requesting for this service since they find the monthly pension from the Social Security System not enough to cover their needs.

Meanwhile, Microsoft’s computer training project with OWWA is now in five countries where there are big concentrations of OFWs.

The project, called Tulay, seeks to provide OFWs and their families access to information technology. Computer training centers are currently set up in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Taiwan, Singapore and Saudi Arabia.

Locally, the centers can also be found at the OWWA headquarters and in other regions such as Cebu, La Union and Cagayan de Oro.

Roque said the largest enrollees for the free computer course are found in Hong Kong.

The OWWA spends an average of P400,000 every year per learning center where OFWs are taught basic computer, word processing, spreadsheet, Internet and e-mail fundamentals, digital media, and presentation and database fundamentals.    

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THE Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration (OWWA) is studying the possibility of setting up a pension fund for workers abroad to help them receive monetary assistance upon retirement.

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