OFWs to be Consulted for Labor Migration Management Plan

The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), in partnership with the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), has launched a nationwide consultation with overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) for the development of the Labor Migration Management Plan (LaMMP) 2026–2028.

The initiative kicked off with the Visayas leg held on April 9–11 in Panglao, Bohol, gathering over 100 OFW leaders and stakeholders from Regions 4B, 5, 6, 7, 8, CAR, CARAGA, and NCR. The consultation seeks to craft a medium-term roadmap for labor migration that is inclusive, evidence-based, and responsive to the needs and experiences of Filipino migrant workers. DMW Secretary Hans Leo J. Cacdac emphasized the importance of deep collaboration in shaping the LaMMP, highlighting the need to engage OFWs not just as beneficiaries, but as co-authors of national development. 

“Their (OFWs) voices must be heard in this process not as beneficiaries but as co-authors of the solutions. We must acknowledge their experiences as one of the important data sources and their hopes and dreams to help us shape this plan and policies,” Cacdac said in his keynote address. 

DMW Undersecretary Dominique Rubia-Tutay stressed that the OFWs’ inputs will directly shape the implementation of the plan. “It will not remain as a plan. We need to put action in the plan and all of us will be the stakeholders who will make the plans and the programs put into action together,” she said. 

The event featured a panel discussion on key accomplishments, challenges, and best practices from DMW Regional Directors, followed by first hand testimonies from OFWs on their labor migration experiences. 

The DMW also introduced the “Tahanan ng OFW” Strategic Framework and presented a report on the current state of labor migration in the Philippines. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) contributed insights on global migration trends and the future of work during the plenary session that followed.  

Joining the consultation were Undersecretary Felicitas Q. Bay; Assistant Secretaries Violeta Illescas, Venecio Legazpi, and Maria Regina Galias; regional directors from DMW and OWWA; representatives from the academe, private recruitment agencies, NGOs, and local government units. 

The three-day Bohol forum is the first of three regional consultations. The next rounds for Luzon and Mindanao will take place later this month in Metro Manila. The results of these dialogues will be integral to the formulation of the first-ever LaMMP, a landmark policy initiative aimed at strengthening migrant worker welfare, protection, and reintegration.