Korean Herald Interviews Korea Philippine Embassy's Second Consul Jed Dayang

Words: Yoav Cerralbo Pic: mine and Yoav Cerralbo's       Jed soulfully singing in a dinner he          hosted for us first of November. 'Financial literacy is for everyone'
	"In savings, it's not the amount of money you earn, it's what you save," said Philippine second secretary and vice council Juan Dayang. Various studies have shown that people do not know how to manage their personal finances and find themselves in trouble as a result. "There's a global campaign now to educate people not only in developing countries but also in developed countries so that people become more knowledgeable about using money or credit or reducing debt," Dayang said before returning to Manila after working in Seoul for the past six years. The Philippines started a financial literacy campaign in 2003 due to their low savings rate compared with other ASEAN nations. Overseas Filipino workers account for about 10 percent of the Philippines' GDP. That adds up to approximately $10-12 billion in annual remittance. Yet it is common to find Filipino workers with little or no money when they return home after a few years working abroad. One such person is Ali Rosa, who worked in Hong Kong and Kuwait as a nanny for many years. Second secretary and vice council Juan Dayang [Yoav Cerralbo/The Korea Herald] "She was very proud that she sent her brothers and sisters and her nephews and nieces to school, but she saved nothing. "When she returned home, her brothers and sisters were not there to pick her up at the airport and she is now living in a workers center run by an NGO that assists Filipinos returning home after working abroad," he said. One of the first programs Philippines Ambassador Luis Cruz introduced when arriving to Seoul in February was a Savers Club for Filipino workers. "He also added roadshows to explain how to invest and save money." Since then the embassy has organized several seminars, mostly in Seoul on Sundays, to explain the different options available. Their first target was Filipinos living in Seoul. From there it spread to other parts of the nation with the help of the embassy. "In the beginning I found very little interest but the other day, after a three hour seminar, one of the leaders (of the foreign workers in Seoul) said that the seminar could change his life," to prepare him to start a business back home. The seminars Dayang hosts are not only about providing foreign workers with skills, but also about business opportunities in the Philippines. Dayang explained that with the money saved during their time in Korea they can either start a small business or build a two-apartment building where rent from one apartment would provide income. The first advice Dayang gave was to set a goal. Also, try to secure both passive and active income. Active income is money earned from work while a passive income is money coming in from investments. "It could be as simple as opening a time deposit account for one year." Most important, he said, is to follow a formula. The formula most people use these days is income minus expenses equals savings. "What if your expenses are higher? What if what you're buying you can buy cheaper?" "After setting a goal, your new equation can be income minus savings equals expenses. It's called the concept of paying yourself first," he said. These formulas are applicable to everyone from foreign workers to English teachers to office people or store clerks. Another piece of advice is to pay off credit as soon as possible, no matter if it's a school loan or credit card. "Think about what is your present income, where do you want to go and how will you achieve it? The easiest way is to save and invest," he said. He added that expats should make use of the high interest Korean banks offer for time deposit accounts that can be as a high as 7 percent. Once money is saved, Dayang advises to protect it and to avoid get-rich-quick schemes such as pyramid or internet scams, "they never work." "Everyone wants financial stability, the reason why foreign workers came here is because they want to have more money, they have goals but sometimes forget, so keep those goals in mind," he said. He also suggests setting realistic goals and being consistent with the money saved, even if it is not much. By Yoav Cerralbo (yoav@heraldm.com)