By
Alfonso T. Ruda
DIPOLOG
CITY - The Regional Development Council (RDC)-IX has recently
passed a resolution urging concerned government agencies and Local Government
Units (LGUs) in the Zamboanga Peninsula region to advocate the availment of the
Social Security System’s (SSS) Flexi-Fund Program for Overseas Filipino Workers
(OFWs).
In
its resolution dated Feb. 16, 2015, RDC-IX requested the Department of Labor
and Employment (DOLE), Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), Philippine
Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), Philippine Information Agency (PIA)
and the local government units (LGUs) to encourage the OFWs to avail themselves
of the SSS Flexi-Fund Program.
Based
on the 2013 Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) survey, as of 2014, only
443,000 or 32.4% of the 1,028,252 registered voluntary member OFWs, are paying
SSS premiums and receiving benefits.
It
was also noted in the survey that only two of every five OFWs are able to save
from their cash remittances.
The
SSS Flexi-Fund Program, which is a voluntary provident fund, is an innovation
for OFWs financial security. It is tax-free and could be availed of by the
member as early as three years after membership date. However, he/she may
choose to leave the fund intact until he/she retires.
The
program was launched to encourage OFWS to make saving a priority for use in
their future needs or to mitigate loss of income once they come home. This is
considered as an exclusive safe investment vehicle for 0FWs, which requires at
least P200 paid premium in excess of current maximum salary credit of P16
thousand.