Overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) can expect wider coverage and better services from the government as the Department of Migrant Workers’ (DMW) budget for 2026 has increased by 34 percent.

At a Palace briefing Monday, Undersecretary Bernard Olalia reported that the DMW’s allocation under the 2026 General Appropriations Act (GAA) rose to PHP11.745 billion from last year’s PHP8.76 billion.

“For the Office of the Secretary, we have PHP7.46 billion, an increase of 40 percent, coming up from PHP5.3 billion last year. Iyong OWWA (Overseas Workers Welfare Administration) po natin, ganoon din po, nag-increase siya from PHP3.4 billion last year, ang (For our OWWA, it’s the same, it increased from PHP3.4 billion last year, its GAA) for 2026 is PHP4.285 billion, an increase of 26 percent,” he said.

Olalia highlighted the department’s strengthened social services for OFWs, including the Aksyon Fund, which provides financial, medical, legal, and repatriation assistance.

He said for the first time, the DMW has allocated PHP2 billion for the Aksyon Fund, higher than last year’s PHP1.2 billion budget.

He added that in 2025 alone, the Fund assisted 160,769 OFWs, including financial aid for 27,661 beneficiaries, medical assistance for 1,085 cases, legal support for 6,780 cases, and repatriation aid for 3,723 individuals affected by scams abroad, especially from Cambodia and Myanmar.

Meanwhile, the OFW Hospital in Pampanga was upgraded to Level 2, with a total budget of PHP639 million, including PHP145 million for capital outlay, as it continues to implement zero-billing policies for patients.

Olalia said OWWA’s Emergency Repatriation program will receive PHP1.286 billion in 2026.

The “Alagang OWWA” caravans, which bring government services to OFWs abroad, meanwhile, have assisted 63,161 workers and facilitated 145,807 transactions as of November 2025, primarily in the Middle East, Asia, and Europe.

“Iyong ‘Alagang OWWA’ natin part of those expenses will be for the caravans – ito po iyong ginagawa nating serbisyo sa ating mga OFWs abroad na kung saan may whole-of-government approach tayo hindi bababa sa labing limang ahensiya, departamento ng iba’t ibang government po ang tumutulong para ilapit iyong serbisyo, government services para sa ating mga OFWs abroad (Our ‘OWWA Cares’ program, part of those expenses will be for the caravans –this is the service we provide to our OFWs abroad, where we have a whole-of-government approach with no less than fifteen agencies and departments from various government branches helping to bring government services closer to our OFWs abroad),” Olalia said.

He said an OFW Caravan is currently being conducted in Dubai, headed by First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, DMW Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac, and OWWA Chief Patricia Yvonne Caunan. (PNA)