Philippine migrant workers pay personal price

Those going abroad for jobs earn more money, but their absence comes at a cost to their families.

The Philippine economy is heavily reliant on income from migrant workers.

It’s been more than 30 years since the first wave of economic migrants left the Philippines for richer shores.

Today, 10 percent of the country’s 94 million people work abroad, and the money they send back is an important driver of domestic spending – worth about 10 percent of the Philippines’ gross domestic product.

And for those billions of dollars are sent home annually, the families left behind pay a high price.

Al Jazeera’s Marga Ortigas reports from the city of Batangas.

Source: Al Jazeera