Global crisis should prompt Aquino to find new dev’t paradigm
The Migrant Heritage Commission said it is high-time for the
government to change its development paradigm, especially in the wake of
reports that 1,000 Filipino teachers in Prince Georges County and
Baltimore in Maryland are facing deportation.
By INA ALLECO R. SILVERIO
Bulatlat.com
The deadline for development was yesterday.
A migrant organization based in Washington DC in the United States
has called on the Benigno Aquino III government to focus its effort at
developing local industries in the Philippines by promoting science and
research programs instead of relying on labor export to sustain the
economy.
In a statement, the Migrant Heritage Commission (MHC) said, it is
high-time for the government to change its development paradigm.
The MHC is a service institution for immigrants in the US, which is
providing for their legal, education, cultural development, and
information needs. It provides assistance to Filipinos with immigration
and labor cases.
The group said the worsening global economic meltdown that had its
flashpoint in the US severely affects Filipino workers abroad. It cited
the cases of retrenchment of some 1,000 Filipino teachers in Maryland
and the discontinuation of hiring of Filipino nurses in the US.
“These massive dislocations are an indication that labor exportation
cannot be the sole paradigm of development. It should make us realize
that we have to go back to our own issues, and develop our own local
economy where families could stay together and need not leave the
children in order to respond to basic necessities,” said MHC
co-executive director Jesse Gatchalian.
Human rights lawyer Arnedo Valera, co-executive director, said the
Philippines continues to be poor because of the absence of locally-based
industries that spawn jobs and create self-reliance.
Valera criticized the Philippine government’s continued reliance on
labor exportation as a way to sustain the economy. He cited reports from
the Department of Labor and Employment showing that an average of 2700
Filipinos leave the country everyday to work overseas.
“The dollar remittances of these overseas Filipinos are mainly used
for consumption and education to propel the same kind of system,” Valera
said. He said having an economic system reliant on remittances from
abroad makes for a vulnerable economy.
“It does not create a long-term solid foundation of industrial strength and stability,” he said.
Dollar remittances comprise 10 to 13 percent of all Philippine
revenues. The Philippine Central Bank, however, has reported that
between 2008 and 2010, these remittances have gone down by some 25
percent because of the effects of the global recession.
Need to increase budgets for agriculture and health
According to the MHC, the Philippine government should provide
sufficient budget for scientific projects and researches, particularly
on agriculture and health.
Valera said the Philippines has rich and vast natural resources, but majority still live in poverty..... MORE
Source: Bulatlat.com
URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2011/09/07/global-crisis-should-prompt-aquino-to-find-new-devt-paradigm/
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