MANILA, PHILIPPINES — Being an Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) takes a lot of courage and determination, as it requires a lot of sacrifices in order to earn money to provide and support their family’s needs and make their caring presence felt even from afar, especially during these trying times. However, there are still some OFWs who find it hard to send remittances to their loved ones due to a lack of access to convenient financial solutions.
This was one of the key points raised during the “Alagang GCash” virtual event by GCash, the country’s leading mobile wallet, and Globe. The online event was graced by Senator Joel Villanueva, GCash President and CEO Martha Sazon, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Administrator Atty. Hans Leo Cacdac, GCash Head of International Remittance Jules Abalos, and GCash Head of Wealth Management Jong Layug. The event was hosted by broadcast journalist Korina Sanchez-Roxas.
To help OFWs send money back to their families in the Philippines, GCash introduced easy-to-understand, secure and seamless digital financial solutions, which are even more critical during the pandemic.
“In 2019, the country has over PHP1.56 trillion of cash remittances accumulated from OFWs. Indeed, they have a major contribution when it comes to building our economy. We are also grateful for digital financial solutions like GCash that make it possible for our OFWs to support the financial needs of their loved ones back home, safely and in real-time,” said Sen. Villanueva.
During the event, various GCash highlighted financial products and services that cater to the needs of OFWs and their families were presented. These include GCash Pay Bills feature, where they can pay for their SSS contributions; and Money Transfer which enables them to send money to their families in the Philippines, for free.
Even beyond padala, OFWs can also be present and celebrate important occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays with their family and friends, even when they are miles away, thanks to GCash. They can show they care and send gifts to their loved ones by availing of everyday deals and rewards on the GCash app.
With GCash, OFWs can also help secure the future of their families. On the GCash app, they can easily access financial services such as GInsure for affordable insurance packages, GInvest for investments in stocks and bonds, and GSave to manage their financial savings.
“As we recognize the sacrifices and hard work of our modern-day heroes abroad, we want to make a real difference in the lives of every Filipino around the globe by providing them equal access to financial opportunities and a chance to achieve their dreams for themselves and support their families wherever they are,” said Sazon.
Atty. Cacdac also highlighted the importance of GCash teaming up with various sectors when it comes to sending the government’s help to OFWs all over the globe. “The effort of GCash in partnering with the public and private sectors has made our duty to reach Filipinos abroad much easier. Not only does GCash help OFWs keep track of their hard-earned money that they send back home to their loved ones, but most especially, GCash also introduces OFWs to financial literacy by disseminating safe and effective solutions,” Atty. Cacdac said.
OFWs can also manage their cash remittances via GCash together with its new global remittance partners like Ithmaar Bank, Panda Remit, TikFX, Xoom, Global Remit, Fast Remit, Lucky Money Inc., and Sendwave.
Filipinos abroad can download the GCash app on Google Play or App Store and register an account, provided they have an active and roaming Philippine SIM card.
For more information, visit https://www.gcash.com/services/.
