OFWs fuel urban-rural gap (2007)

By Felipe Salvosa II

Money from overseas workers is fueling the divide between urban and rural areas with remittances tending to benefit the country’s affluent regions, leaving poorer regions behind and worsening inequality, according to a study.

And while overseas Filipino workers’ (OFW) remittances have contributed significantly to the economy’s growth, the study by the University of Santo Tomas (UST) confirmed the worrisome phenomenon of agricultural workers leaving the farms to join industries in more developed regions and wait for the opportunity to become OFWs themselves. 

The study, "Workers’ Remittances and Economic Growth in the Philippines" authored by economist Alvin P. Ang of the UST Social Research Center, found that the more OFWs sent per region, the lower the percentage of workers in the farm sector.

Washington SyCip: Fighting the good fight

By Felipe Salvosa II

AT 90 years old, Washington Z. SyCip, legendary founder of the monolithic audit firm SGV & Co. and one of the pioneers of the Asian Institute of Management, is still up and about.

Mr. SyCip is wearing a new hat as the Philippine government’s private sector adviser for the 45^th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank, which opens this week in Manila.

Despite his age (Mr. SyCip has met all Philippine presidents except Emilio Aguinaldo), the accountant and accounting professor who served as a cryptographer in Calcutta during World War 2 has not fallen into the trap of cynicism. Mr. SyCip still believes Asia is the future and the Philippines has bright prospects ahead.

“It’s not the age. It’s how you feel,” Mr. SyCip told BusinessWorld in a Saturday morning interview at the SGV headquarters in Makati.

Photo from Wikipedia

Jeffrey Sachs: Philippines 'very complicated'

By Felipe Salvosa II

There are simply too many babies being born in the Philippines, making it “very hard” for poverty-reduction efforts to make even a dent, according to one of the world’s most influential economists.

Fertility rates are “too high” and something should be done to bring down the number of babies born per household to an average of two instead of the current three to promote economic growth and achieve “social inclusion,” said Jeffrey D. Sachs, director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University.

Photo from Wikipedia