The two-day Bagong Bayani ng Mundo: OFW Serbisyo Caravan in China concluded on September 14 with 1,025 service transactions, marking a strong turnout for the first-ever caravan held in Shanghai.
Seven government agencies took part in the event led by the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), along with the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), Social Security System (SSS), Pag-IBIG Fund, the Philippine Statistics Authority/PhilSys, and LandBank of the Philippines. The caravan was organized in cooperation with the Philippine Consulate General in Shanghai.
The Shanghai leg is the eighth in a series of global caravans designed to bring government services closer to overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), in line with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s directive to make services more accessible to Filipinos abroad.
Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac assured the Filipino community in Shanghai that the government is committed to faster and more efficient processes through digitalization.
He highlighted the pilot testing of the e-Serbisyo Hub under the eGovPH app, which will allow OFWs to process documentation online without face-to-face interaction.
“Red carpet, not red tape for our OFWs,” Cacdac said, thanking Consul General Myca Magnolia M. Fischer and the Philippine Consulate General for successfully hosting the event.
Many OFWs, most of whom work in education, arts, and the food and beverage sector, took time off to avail themselves of the caravan’s services. These included OWWA card applications, membership enrollment and updating, and National ID registration for OFWs and their families.
Participants praised the initiative, saying it saved them both time and money by allowing them to process their concerns abroad rather than in the Philippines.
