Overview
The Overseas Filipinos Remittances for Development (OFs-RED): Building a Future Back Home is currently being implemented by the CFO and the Provincial Government of Ilocos Norte (PGIN) in partnership with the National Economic Development Authority, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and supported by the Western Union Foundation (WEF).
The project which was launched in 2011 and currently piloted in the province of Ilocos Norte, has enabled the setting up of a collective remittance fund with the PGIN, the locally-based Cooperative Bank of Ilocos Norte (CBIN) and the WEF, contributing P1 million each (or US$23,000.00 each) for a total of P3 million ($US68,000.00).
The Collective Remittance Fund in Ilocos Norte
Collective remittances refers to the pooling of individual remittances in order to create a source of funds, large and stable enough, to finance meaningful investments in employment-generating activities.
The Western Union Foundation (WUF) through the Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO), the Provincial Government of Ilocos Norte (PGIN) and the Cooperative Bank of Ilocos Norte (CBIN), agreed to a fund matching scheme and raised Php 3 Million in August 2012.
www.ofredtipudno.com
Availment
The fund is limited to former or active overseas Filipino or their dependents with new or existing income generating enterprise. The minimum loan that can be availed is PHP15,000 with the maximum at half a million pesos . The special interest rate is 12% per annum.
In 2013, there were 46 loan applications filed. Of this number, 14 applications were approved amounting to PHP 1.28 million. Loans went to fund micro-small enterprises such as dragon fruit planting, bagnet making, rice trading, hog breeding, sari-sari (retail) stores etc.
To date, the OFRED Collective Remittance Fund has already financed 34 enterprises with 37 loan releases worth PHP 3.35 million since 2013 (last quarter) to 31 March 2015. Most of the borrowers are women whose entrepreneurship generated local employment, sustained and increased family income and contributed to the local economic development. The Fund has been fully utilized and was infused with additional funds by the Cooperative Bank of Ilocos Norte (the depository bank).
Mr. Rodrigo V. Garcia Jr., Officer-in-charge of Policy, Planning and Research Division (PPRD) of the Commission on Filipinos Overseas oversees the implementation of the OFRED Project.
Contact information of Mr. Garcia:
Agency: Commission on Filipinos Overseas
Address: Citigold Center, 1345 Quirino Highway corner Osmena Highway
Paco, Manila, Philippines
Telephone numbers: (632) 552-4765/918-589-6585
Email: rgarcia@cfo.gov.ph
Website of CFO: www.cfo.gov.ph