Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES|
Constitution Hills, Quezon City

HCUSE OF

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS:
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL No, 1429

Introduced by Representative Salvador B. Belaro Jr.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This bill seeks to provide continuing education, whether in the nature of
college, graduate studies or skills training to Overseas Filipino Workers
(OFWs), through the use of our embassies and consulates abroad.

The OFWs have been hailed by the Government as our country’s
modern-day heroes considering the economic impact of their total remittances
that have kept our economy afloat throughout the years amidst all global
financial turmoil and natural disasters.

Unknown to many, however, part of the challenges faced by the OFWs
and their dependents who live with them abroad, is the need to develop new
skills, learn new things, and pursue formal or further studies in order to remain
competitive in the international labor market, and also to prepare them for their
permanent return to our beloved motherland after their work stint abroad.

This brings forward the imperative for the Philippine Government to
rightfully provide our unsung heroes, the OFWs, as well as their dependents
living with them abroad, the necessary access to quality higher education or
skills training, whether online or geographic based-learning made possible

RECEIVED

RESISTPATON UNIT
BILLS AND .NDEX SERVICE


through the Philippine embassies and consulate offices abroad which are the
most logical venues for instruction of such nature.

fet Ma

ATTY. SALVADOR B. BELARO JR.
Representative
1-Ang Edukasyon Party List


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Constitution Hills, Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL No._1439

Introduced by Representative Salvador B. Belaro, Jr.

AN ACT
PROVIDING OVERSEAS FILIPINO WORKERS AND THEIR
DEPENDENTS ABROAD ACCESS TO HIGHER EDUCATION AND
SKILLS TRAININGS

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines
in Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. This Act shall be known as the “OFW Higher
Education and Skills Training Act of 2016.”

SEC. 2. All Philippine embassies and consulate offices abroad are hereby
mandated to work with Philippine-based academic degree-granting institutions,
preferably with online class offerings, duly recognized by the Commission on
Higher Education (CHED); and/or technical vocational institutions (TVIs) duly
recognized by the Technical Education Skills and Development Authority
(TESDA) to make available courses and/or program offerings, whether degree
or short courses, which can be made available to OF Ws and/or their dependents
abroad, within their respective areas of jurisdiction.

Section 3. For such purpose, our existing embassies and consulates abroad shall
be used as venues for the provision of higher education programs, whether for
college or graduate studies, or for skills training, Also, the existing personnel of



said embassies and consulates may also be tapped as instructors for the said
programs.

Section 4. Participating schools who send their faculty members from the
Philippines to teach in the said embassies and consulates shall receive a
reasonable subsidy from the government for said teachers’ travel and lodging
expenses, the amount of which shall be decided on a case-to-case basis.

Section 5. The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Department of Labor
and Employment (DOLE), Commission on Higher Education (CHED), and the
Technical Education Skills and Development Authority (TESDA), shall jointly
formulate and plan the successful implementation of this Act.

SEC. 6. The funds necessary to carry out the provision of this Act shall be
included in the General Appropriation Act of the year following its enactment
into law and thereafter.

SEC. 6. All laws, orders, issuances rules and regulations or parts thereof
inconsistent with any provisions of this Act are hereby repealed, modified or
amended accordingly.

SEC. 7. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

Approved.