This mobile app aims to give Pinay OFWs safe access to tips when working abroad

May 18, 2021 - 5:52 PM
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File photo of Overseas Filipino Workers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. Photo by Bernard Testa, InterAksyon.

A mobile application was launched to provide Filipino women who work overseas an access to important information about the Philippine embassies in their respective countries in Southeast Asia.

The app called “Babaeng BiyaHero” was launched in line with the celebration of the International Month of Labor this May.

The Babaeng BiyaHero is the official campaign of a group called Safe and Fair Philippines under the European Union and the United Nations.

The mobile app was described as a go-to resource hub for female migrant workers in the region.

GMA star Maine Mendoza is also the app’s celebrity endorser.

“One of its initiatives includes the Babaeng BiyaHero helpline and mobile app. Safe and Fair Philippines’ Celebrity Champion, Maine Mendoza, headlines the launch of the mobile application,” the release read.

“The mobile app aims to give Pinay Migrant Workers a safe access to practical tips when working abroad, important hotlines to call, maps and details of the Philippine embassy in their respective countries in Southeast Asia,” it added.

In its website, the Safe and Fair said realizing women migrant workers’ rights and opportunities in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) or the Safe and Fair group is part of a larger global initiative called Spotlight Initiative. It added that this aims to eliminate violence against women and girls.

“Pangkalahatang layunin nito na tiyaking ligtas at patas ang migrasyong paggawa para sa lahat ng kababaihan sa rehiyong ASEAN,” its website description read.

The campaign also urged government officials and other stakeholders to help Filipina OFWs migrate and work safely in the neighboring countries.

“The campaign calls on government officials, stakeholders, communities, and migrant workers themselves to promote a more equitable, safe, fair, and better normal for every Filipina by ensuring that they are equipped with the knowledge and capability to access effective and timely services that will support them throughout their migration experience,” it said.

Safe and Fair caters to all Filipino female migrants in the SEA region including those working in land-based and sea-based jobs.

This also covers all the procedures of migration, citing “pre-departure o bago umalis, in-transit o habang nasa biyahe, on-site o pagdating sa destinasyong bansa, return and reintegration o pagbalik sa Pilipinas.”

The regional Safe and Fair is a collaborative effort of the International Labor Organization, the UN Entity for Gender Equality, the UN Women and the UN Office of on Drugs and Crime.

Meanwhile, the mobile app for OFWs can now be accessed and downloaded on Google Play Store and Apple App Store.