The Philippine Experience in the

Measurement of Migration:

Perspectives of an Emigration Country

Ma. Alcestis Abrera Mangahas

International Forum on Migration Statistics

January 15-16, 2018, Paris, France

2

• A long history of data collection and archives

• Institutionalized inter-agency coordination

committees

• Use of a variety of data sources – national and

local surveys, administrative data, research

findings

• Over 25 government and private agencies

engaged in collection of data

The Philippines as a Sending

Country

3

Issues and Concerns

• Inconsistences in data definitions

• Differences in language and

methodologies

• Controversy in the estimated numbers of

Filipinos overseas and overseas workers

• Inadequate institutional consultations in

reform and expansion of data collection

4

NEDA-SWS 2017 Study

A comprehensive study compiling currently

available data on international migration,

analyze gaps and recommend

improvements to support policy formulation

and development planning

– International Migration Almanac 2017

– Scoping Report

– Recommendations

5

Organizational Frameworks

• Migrant Counts

• Direction of Migration

• Stocks and Flows

• Legal Status

Migration and Development

• Option for Foreign

Employment

• Business of Recruitment

• Vulnerability at Work

• Social Protection and

Political Participation

• OF and OFW Family Well-

being

6

• Inherent difficulty of measuring from the source country

as restrictive migration channels may mask real

intentions

• Legal definitions and Operational Frameworks vs.

International Standards

On Nature of the Phenomenon

Findings

Inconsistences in Practice

• Survey language, residency rules, non-standardized

variables

• Data access

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• Inattention to student migration; gap on return migration;

poor monitoring of foreign in-migration

• Complexity of irregular migration

• SDG Data requirements are not yet started: Remittance

prices; Recruitment/migration costs

• Bettter data collection on migration and development is

needed: Vulnerability of Workers; Business Prices; Family

Well-being; Social Protection and Political Participation

Incomplete and Missing Data

Findings

8

• Governance and leadership

• Small, simple but essential improvements

• New data collection

• Investment in institutional capacity.

• Regular Reporting on the State of International

Migration Data

•

Recommendations

9

Selected Highlights

10

Stocks Flows Chart 3A. Stock Estimates of Permanent, Temporary and

Irregular Overseas Filipinos, in millions, 2000-2013 Chart 3B. Outflows of Overseas Filipinos: Registered

Emigrants and Deployed Workers, in millions, 2011-2015

The Permanent and Temporary

Sources: Commission on Filipinos Overseas, Philippine Overseas Employment Administration

Permanent

4.87

4.21

1.16

1.69 1.80 1.84 1.83 1.84

0.08 0.08 0.08 0.08 0.09

0.00

0.20

0.40

0.60

0.80

1.00

1.20

1.40

1.60

1.80

2.00

2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Millio

ns

POEA CFO

11

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

1,400

1,600

1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2014 2015

Th

ou

sa

nd

s

Source: The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration

Chart 7. Cumulative Total of Deployed Land-based Workers and Seafarers, in 000, 1975-2015

OFWs: More Land than Sea

Land-based

Sea-based

12

Chart 10. Top Emigrant Destination Countries, in %, 1987-2015

Source: Commission on Filipinos Overseas

Note: *USA and Insular Area (American Samoa, Guam, Commonwealth of the Mariana Islands, US Virgin Islands, Republic of Marshall Islands,

Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of Palau, and Commonwealth of Puerto Rico)

Emigrant Destinations: US,

Canada, Australia and Japan

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

1981 1985 1987 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2014 2015

USA* CANADA JAPAN AUSTRALIA ITALY

NEW ZEALAND GERMANY UNITED KINGDOM SOUTH KOREA SPAIN

USA 43.89%

Canada 36.24%

Japan 4.72%

Australia 5.23%

Italy 2.64

%

13

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

1987 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2014 2015

Saudi Arabia UAE Singapore Qatar Hong Kong Kuwait

Taiwan Malaysia Bahrain Canada Japan Oman

OFW Destinations: A Dominant Middle

East and Significant East Asian Flows

Source: The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration

Chart 11. Top OFW Destinations, in %, 1987-2015

Saudi Arabia 28.24% UAE

15.79%

Singapore 9.84%

Qatar 9.26%

Hong Kong 5.96%

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Source: The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration

Chart 31. Licensed Private Recruitment and Manning Agencies, By category of license, 1982-2015

The Business of Recruitment

15

6,631

2,798

6,894

2,998

12,068 10,177

24,812

8,295

509 523 324 251

0

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

25,000

30,000

2013 2014 2015 2016

Source: Department of Foreign Affairs

Vulnerability Chart 35. Reported OFW Cases at Philippine Embassies and Missions, 2013-2016

In distress

Human

Trafficking

Repatriated

16

Chart 47. Overseas Filipinos’ Cash Remittances, in

000, 1979-2015

Foreign Exchange Remittances

Source: Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas

Chart 48. Frequency in Receiving Remittances, in %,

2015

103 421 687 1,181

4,878 6,050

10,689

18,763

24,348

22,124

1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2014 2015

71%

15%

8%

4%

2%

Often

Sometimes

Seldom

Never

No answer

17

How OFW Families Spend their

Remittances

Source: Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas

Chart 52. How OFW Families Spend their Remittances, by Type of Expenditure, in %, 2007, 2010, 2016

18

Moving Out of Poverty

Source: Social Weather Stations

Chart 53. OFW Filipino Households Identifying Themselves as Poor, Compared with Non-OFW Households, in %,

2001-2016

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

2001 2002 2003 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

With OFW in the HH

Without OFW in the HH

51%

40%