PAG-IBIG Fund opens service desk in Oman
THE PAG-IBIG FUND recently opened an Informa- tion Desk in the Sultanate of Oman, as the agency expands its network to provide service to Overseas Filipino Workers in the Arab state.
“The OFWmembership is one of Pag-IBIG’s fastest growing segments. The number of OFW members has grown by 60% annually since 2010. Today, we have about 3 million members working abroad. That’s 24% of our total membership of 12.5 million,” said Pag-IBIG Chairman Vice President Jejomar C. Binay.
The opening of the new information desk inside the Philippine Embassy in Muscat is part of the Fund’s thrust to make its services more accessible and responsive to the members’ needs. The new office in the capital of Oman will cater to the needs of about 50,000 OFWs in the country. Pag-IBIG Fund operates 19 overseas posts around the globe.
As the provider of a national savings program and affordable shelter financing for all Filipino workers, Pag-IBIG Fund gives its’ members highyielding and tax- free savings that is guaranteed by the Philippine Government and access to low interest loans.
The agency recently doubled the housing loan amount from P3 million to P6 million and reduced the interest rates. A separate socialized housing program with a 4.5% interest rate fixed for 10 years was also launched to help minimum wage earners own a home.
Pag-IBIG President Atty. Darlene Marie Berberabe met with the Filipino Community in Muscat. She spoke in a forum attended by 200 community leaders there to give details about the benefits Pag-IBIG Fund provides its members and updates on its services. Ambassador Joselito Jimeno, Consul General Joy Quintana, Vice Consul Jose Garcia and Labor Attaché Ernesto Bihis were among the Philippine Embassy officials who made the briefing possible.
“This is the thrust of Pag-IBIG Fund. We want to be where our members are. And we want them to know that we are at their service. I met a member in Oman who invested P1.02 Million in our Modified Pag-IBIG II Savings Program (MP2). I felt very much honored of the fact that he chose to invest his hard-earned money in Pag-IBIG Fund. With our wide array of services, I want to inform our members that they can rely on Pag-IBIG for their every need,” Berberabe said.
The MP2 Program is a voluntary savings program for Pag-IBIG members where their mini- mum savings of P500 a month for a fixed period of five years shall earn higher annual dividends compared to the mandatory savings program of Pag-IBIG.