This study examined how remittances from Filipinos living in New Zealand and their Associations and Organizations contributed to community development in the Philippines. It specifically examined the impacts of both individual and collective remittances to the household and community level and on the broader society as a whole. This study also identified the opportunities brought about by Filipino remittances from New Zealand to communities of origin in the Philippines and possible avenues for the enhancement of the impact of these remittances at the local community level and on society. Case study as a research methodology was used in the study in order to have an in depth, more exhaustive and more comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon. It helped captured the emerging themes of remittance practices and development work of Filipinos and their Associations and Organizations in New Zealand to communities of origin in the Philippines. It also helped understand the phenomenon in the real life context in which a one shot survey or observation failed to capture. The study found that while it was common for overseas Filipinos to send individual remittances to household members in the Philippines for household use and human investments for family members, this was not always the case for Filipinos in New Zealand. Most Filipino migrants in New Zealand had their immediate family living with them in the host country and they sent individual remittances to the Philippines either as gifts for parents to maintain their livelihood, for investment, and support for the education of nephews and nieces. With collective remittances, individual Filipinos and their Associations and Organizations in New Zealand were actively contributing in the pooling of resources for development works in communities of origins in the Philippines. At the same time, they engaged with their recipient communities in the Philippines in order to establish and maintain their transnational ties for effective implementation of development projects in the home country. The study also found that individual remittances coming from New Zealand for family members in the Philippines had a greater impact on the family as a whole. Remittances helped establish income generating activities in the family that have multiplier effects to the family such as a steady source of income, strong purchasing power and extra money for the health and education of children. Individual remittances coming from New Zealand to support the family activities in the community also helped the name of the family in the Philippines in a good stead. On a community level, collective remittances helped maintain culture and tradition as well as raised funds for the implementation of scholarship programs, medical missions, shelter for orphaned children, and basic infrastructures in the community such as school buildings, community roads and multipurpose halls. Collective remittances also built communities and gave recipients hope for a brighter future through equitable housing scheme, community empowerment, health, and education programs. Filipino Associations and Organizations in New Zealand were good vehicles in finding opportunities in their communities of origin. They must engaged with Filipino Associations and Organizations and local business people in their local communities and built partnership with them on community based development projects for the benefit of the wider community.

This study examined how remittances from Filipinos living in New Zealand and their Associations and Organizations contributed to community development in the Philippines. It specifically examined the impacts of both individual and collective remittances to the household and community level and on the broader society as a whole. This study also identified the opportunities brought about by Filipino remittances from New Zealand to communities of origin in the Philippines and possible avenues for the enhancement of the impact of these remittances at the local community level and on society. Case study as a research methodology was used in the study in order to have an in depth, more exhaustive and more comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon. It helped captured the emerging themes of remittance practices and development work of Filipinos and their Associations and Organizations in New Zealand to communities of origin in the Philippines. It also helped understand the phenomenon in the real life context in which a one shot survey or observation failed to capture. The study found that while it was common for overseas Filipinos to send individual remittances to household members in the Philippines for household use and human investments for family members, this was not always the case for Filipinos in New Zealand. Most Filipino migrants in New Zealand had their immediate family living with them in the host country and they sent individual remittances to the Philippines either as gifts for parents to maintain their livelihood, for investment, and support for the education of nephews and nieces. With collective remittances, individual Filipinos and their Associations and Organizations in New Zealand were actively contributing in the pooling of resources for development works in communities of origins in the Philippines. At the same time, they engaged with their recipient communities in the Philippines in order to establish and maintain their transnational ties for effective implementation of development projects in the home country. The study also found that individual remittances coming from New Zealand for family members in the Philippines had a greater impact on the family as a whole. Remittances helped establish income generating activities in the family that have multiplier effects to the family such as a steady source of income, strong purchasing power and extra money for the health and education of children. Individual remittances coming from New Zealand to support the family activities in the community also helped the name of the family in the Philippines in a good stead. On a community level, collective remittances helped maintain culture and tradition as well as raised funds for the implementation of scholarship programs, medical missions, shelter for orphaned children, and basic infrastructures in the community such as school buildings, community roads and multipurpose halls. Collective remittances also built communities and gave recipients hope for a brighter future through equitable housing scheme, community empowerment, health, and education programs. Filipino Associations and Organizations in New Zealand were good vehicles in finding opportunities in their communities of origin. They must engaged with Filipino Associations and Organizations and local business people in their local communities and built partnership with them on community based development projects for the benefit of the wider community.

This research examines the impacts and implications of the Philippine labor export migration policy on the human rights conditions of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in Kuwait, Hungary, and Poland with the specific objectives of determining the adequacy of legal protections provided by the policy. Through the use of a mixed-methods approach, which included qualitative field interviews and quantitative analysis, along with policy examination and an interdisciplinary approach, this research has uncovered alarming patterns of “alienation” and “systematic precarization” of labor for migrant workers. This has resulted in the deterioration of the employment conditions of OFWs. The study, as extensively discussed in Chapters 6 and 7, has shown that the “precarization” of migrant workers is continuously occurring in Central Europe, specifically in Hungary and Poland. Meanwhile, OFWs in both contexts, Kuwait and Central Europe, have been subjected to highly exploitative and oppressive working conditions akin to “historical slavery” and “state-induced debt bondage.” Notwithstanding the government’s contention that the Philippine labor export migration law (RA 10022) was designed to protect OFWs, this study has found that it falls short of providing complete protective measures, especially with regard to abusive treatment, systematic alienation, precarization of migrant workers, and organized social exclusion. The study also shows that OFWs are trapped in a vicious cycle, where the breakdown of employee-employer relationships and enslavement-like treatment result in a violent crackdown on their fundamental rights, leading to their unfortunate fate. Therefore, there is an urgent need for policy reforms to improve the legal dimension of OFWs’ protection both national and abroad. This calls for reconsidering the Philippine labor export migration policy absorbed toward the promotion of just, fair, and inclusive international and national labor migration regulation to meet the challenges posed by neoliberal policies.