If our economic system was a stool, solely two legs are holding it up: OFWs and BPOs. The 2 different legs, agriculture and manufacturing, are damaged and undependable.
Now, our two good legs are going through threats and alternatives from world developments. Hopefully we’re prepared.
Sending Filipino employees overseas was speculated to have been a brief technique taken by the primary Marcos administration to deal with native joblessness and the necessity for overseas trade.
Because it occurred, the 1973 oil disaster considerably elevated demand for development and labor in oil-rich Center Jap international locations. Exporting labor earned {dollars} by way of remittances and stored restive unemployed folks from worsening home political strain.
With different sectors of the economic system underperforming by way of the years, what was initially momentary grew to become everlasting. Exporting labor was institutionalized with the 1974 Labor Code. Labor exporting is now incomes near $40 billion a yr.
It’s fascinating to notice that OFWs despatched barely extra {dollars} residence in 2024 than the overall quantity of overseas direct funding that Vietnam attracted throughout the identical yr.
The numbers are almost similar, with OFW remittances ($38.34 billion) barely exceeding Vietnam’s FDI inflows ($38.23 billion) in 2024. True heroes of the nation, certainly. Think about if we supplied OFWs methods of correctly investing a very good a part of that.
From the Marcos martial regulation years to latest occasions, it was the dream of many younger Filipinos to go overseas, like their mother and father. Their selection of faculty programs signifies their want to make their fortune overseas.
Instances are altering. There’s now rising proof suggesting that youthful generations are gravitating towards digital gigs, distant work, and versatile preparations, relatively than working overseas.
In 2018, 96 % of younger Filipinos wished to work abroad. That determine dropped to 80 % by 2024. It’s nonetheless excessive however displaying a downward pattern in abroad aspirations through the years.
This brings us to our BPO business. This noticeable shift in objectives from changing into OFWs to staying at residence to work in outsourcing corporations and digital gigs is spreading with our youthful generations.
Rising up as digital natives, younger Filipinos are comfy with expertise. They nonetheless need to work for overseas employers, presumably due to the upper pay, however remotely.
A 2024 research carried out by Jobstreet with Boston Consulting Group indicated that “Filipino professionals at the moment are extra longing for distant worldwide work than ever (84 %), manner above the Southeast Asia and world averages.” Within the research, the Southeast Asian common is 68 % whereas the worldwide common is 66 %.
Somebody posted this touch upon Reddit: “I’m in Cebu, working remotely for a New Zealand firm, incomes round P100k per thirty days… wonderful work-life steadiness.”
So, for youthful Filipinos with the mandatory expertise, they’re more and more selecting digital gigs, and versatile work preparations over changing into conventional OFWs.
For a lot of of them who grew up with absent OFW mother and father, the shift in choice is comprehensible. They need to be near their kids in selecting digital alternatives at residence that supply each earnings and stability.
A November 2023 research by Agile Information Options discovered 60 % of Filipino survey respondents had been engaged in part-time work throughout the “digital revolution,” specifically amongst youthful folks.
Jason Gaguan, chairman and CEO of Agile Information Options, notes “Filipinos at present aren’t simply adapting to the digital age – they’re actually benefiting from it. With all the brand new expertise and on-line platforms on the market, many are discovering jobs that match their preferences and expertise. It’s a testomony to the adaptability and spirit of the trendy Filipino workforce.”
However how sustainable are these digital alternatives in a rustic struggling to correctly educate its younger folks?
One factor working for Filipinos is how now we have embraced expertise. Based on DataReportal’s “Digital 2025: The Philippines” report, at first of 2025, there have been roughly 97.5 million Filipinos utilizing the web, which corresponded to an web penetration fee of 83.8 % of the overall inhabitants.
As of early 2025, about 90.8 million Filipinos are lively social media customers — equal to 78 % of the nation’s inhabitants.
On the darkish facet, the Philippines has continuously been known as “affected person zero within the world disinformation epidemic,” because of how early and extensively we embraced organized trolling, significantly throughout elections.
A 2018 research by Ong and Cabañes revealed knowledgeable community within the Philippines the place marketing campaign operatives, PR strategists, influencers and fake-account operators work collectively to create disinformation and the phantasm of on-line assist.
The Philippines stands out in Southeast Asia — and even globally with having probably the most developed ecosystems of organized political trolling. Our troll networks are recognized to be refined {and professional}, with confirmed capability to dominate political conversations on-line.
I think about these darkish operations additionally present alternatives that preserve younger Pinoys busy at residence.
The formal BPO business continues to be closely on name middle operations. However there are threats. The “Hold Name Facilities in America Act of 2025” is a bipartisan sponsored invoice pending in Congress threatening our $38-billion BPO business. Some 70 % of purchasers in our IT-BPM sector are from the US.
The invoice is predicted to get some pushback from US companies because it impacts their backside line.
Price is the massive benefit of the Philippines. The typical month-to-month wage for name middle brokers is round P32,200 in 2024 or about $575. Evaluate that to round $3,570 per thirty days within the US.
Nonetheless, upskilling have to be prioritized. AI has began to eat the decision middle jobs. The Philippines should speed up its pivot to higher-value, non-voice companies like software program builders, information analysts, and so forth.
We also needs to diversify shopper markets past the US to hedge in opposition to protectionist insurance policies.
The nation will depend on these two legs of our economic system to ship financial development. We want proactive responses to threats and alternatives these sectors face.
Boo Chanco’s e mail handle is [email protected]. Comply with him on X @boochanco
