Bayanihan Foundation Worldwide

Filipinos Abroad Helping Filipinos at Home

Recent Posts

  • Give up on helping and give in to cynicism? I chose engagement

    I think we too often make choices based on the safety of cynicism, and what we’re lead to is a life not fully lived. Cynicism is fear, and it’s worse than fear – it is active disengagement.
    Ken Burns

    “Good luck, Dale. It’s a loss cause. You’re just wasting all your time and effort in helping the Philippines.  They’re all corrupt at home anyway!” Rene Aguilar told me with a straight face; he snickered and folded his arms across his chest.

    I was shocked; I did not know what to say to him. Rene had been my coworker for many years at Chinese Mutual Aid Association where I used to teach English as a Second Language and Citizenship classes to Chinese and Russian immigrants that lived in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood.

    Rene’s cynicism really bothered me. He may be right. All my work helping and promoting giving was a waste of time and that his cynicism was telling the truth.

    However, as I went through the rest of my day, I met four women who gave me the opposite reaction to cynicism. These women were not cynical; they were engaged and they demonstrated unselfish acts of giving.

    For lunch, I met another former coworker, Emerita Bernales. On the contrary, Emerita was not cynical; she was very encouraging and supportive of my philanthropic work to the Philippines. She wanted to connect me with her husband, Jessie who have sent street children to school in Imus, Cavite, Philippines for many years.

    (left to right) My cousin Sionie Sales, my mother Shirley and her brother, Peter

    Later that afternoon, I visited my Mom and I found out that she had been secretly saving balikbayan boxes full of canned goods, bottled juices, dried beans and rice. She and my cousin, Sionie Sales, have saved these food items for many months now and they were planning to ship them to a home for the aged in the Philippines in Calamba, Laguna.

    Daisy Beth (standing on the right) with friends in Tel Aviv, Israel

    Later that evening, I received a positive email message from Daisy Beth in Tel Aviv, Israel encouraging me to continue the giving that I do in the Philippines. Daisy Beth and her friends in Tel Aviv are planning a fund-raising drive to raise funds for books and sports equipment for schools in the Cordilleras in Northern Philippines.

    After a whirlwind day, I contemplated on the cynicism of Rene and the generosity of Emerita, Sionie, Daisy Beth and my Mom and their plans to engage and give to different parts of the Philippines. These four women all wanted to help in their own way.

    I sided with Emerita, Sionie, Daisy Beth and my Mom who wanted to be engaged and to be part of the solution for change in their own way.  In the end, I chose engagement rather than cynicism.

  • You’re Invited! Fundraising Dinner Featuring Grupong Pendong – Pendong Aban of ASIN

    You’re invited to the Bayanihan Foundation’s Premier Launch & Fundraising Dinner on Sunday, October 24, 2010 – 7PM, Trader Vic’s Restaurant, 1030 N. State St, Chicago.

    Add this event to your Google Calendar

    The dinner will feature Pacific Islands ambience and four-course buffet  including ‘lechon’.

    Pendong Aban, Jr Original Member of ASIN

    Entertainment by Grupong Pendong – Pendong Aban of ASIN, Philippines’ most popular folk rock group.

    Proceeds will benefit:

    • Community projects and partnerships in the Philippines
    • Youth leadership development with second generation Filipino-Americans
    • Education and advocacy efforts to clean up toxic wastes at former US military bases in the Philippines
    • Promotion of return migration or ‘Pagbabalik’ (Coming Home)

    Buy your tickets online by clicking here

  • Vicky’s Story: Belonging Here and There – A Filipina Knits Her Worlds Together Through Service and Activism

    Vicky Silvano (second from left)

    (I’ve originally written this story for the AREA Chicago Magazine Issue #9: Peripheral Vision)

    Vicky’s Story: Belonging Here and There

    “O sige (OK), make sure you all know how to avoid foreclosures and how to take advantage of President Obama’s first time homebuyers stimulus program, any questions from anyone sitting in the back? ” Vicky Silvano points to the back of the room. She’s handing out information to community members attending a recent workshop in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood on how to retain one’s home in the current housing crisis. Vicky works as a real estate broker and many immigrants who own homes pay far more of their incomes for housing, on average, than native-born Chicagoans, and may have been vulnerable to subprime lending.   On the surface, this workshop might just be your garden-variety homeowner information workshop. But in this case, who is delivering the message is as interesting as what is being said.

    Vicky is the immediate past president of The University of the Philippines Alumni Association of Greater Chicago(UPAAGC), which sponsors educational scholarships to the Philippines. It has also sponsored this community-wide workshop to help Filipinos and non-Filipinos living in the Uptown neighborhood learn more about mortgage relief.

    This isn’t the only immigrant group to sponsor meetings on the topic: the Federacion de Michoacanos de Chicago FEDECMI, a Chicago hometown association of Mexican immigrants from Michoacan, Mexico, also sponsored one geared toward Mexicans and non-Mexicans in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood. Both groups’ primary focus is raising funds to donate to projects in their native countries which include the gamut of international projects from providing health and education assistance to large-scale community and infrastructure projects like building local roads and dams.  Vicky’s alumni association has funded various, diverse projects during the last few years including refurbishing classrooms at the University of the Philippines, funding cultural exchanges between the Philippines and the US and sponsoring local forums for Filipino healthcare workers in  Chicago. Over the years, Vicky and her alumni association seemed to be continually involved with both local projects in Chicago and international projects in the Philippines.

    However, the recent economic crisis has affected the amount of community donations diaspora groups send back to their homeland.  The World Bank predicts a decrease as much as seven percent or more.   In comparison, the decrease in community donations are a lot smaller than the drastic reductions of private flows to many developing countries like the Philippines and Mexico.  On the contrary, Vicky and many diaspora donors like her seemed unfazed by the prospects of the current economic downturn and continue to be hopeful.  You could sense the optimism in Vicky’s voice as she answered the questions from the back of the room during  the workshop.  She’s hopeful that some of the attendees will turn out to be potential home buyers and eventually boost her real estate business so she could continue to contribute to UPAAGC at the same or higher financial level this year.  So what do Filipino and Mexican diaspora groups have to do with the local housing crisis?

    “Part of my heart still remains with the Filipinos back home even though I have been here for more than 25 years!  At the same time I also belong here so I want to reach out to help as much as I could,” Vicky said while watching her two teenage daughters, Camille and Carla, hand out pamphlets. “I really don’t see a difference because I care for both my community here and there.” Vicky has worked as a real estate broker for over 10 years and wanted to share her knowledge about the housing market with her community. “This is what I know well and this is how I can contribute and help out as much as I could.”

    She clearly has a strong sense of belonging in both worlds – in Chicago and in the Philippines — even if Filipinos are often treated like outsiders in the United States, even though Filipinos are the second largest immigrant group to the United States, after Mexicans (World Bank fact book 2008).

    “I feel I’ve been let down,” Vicky lamented. “Even though I try my best to belong here, not many people know about the Philippines or what’s happening back there.  So I try my best to tell my clients about the Philippines and about my work with UPAAGC  providing educational scholarships back in the Philippines.”

    Perhaps Vicky helped someone at that housing seminar to keep their home from foreclosure or gave information so they can buy their first home.  But what’s just as important is what Vicky got out of it.  In the act of giving, she felt connected, she belonged.  Vicky’s personal story is not unique; it reflects the new immigrant experience of belonging both here and there as immigrant groups continue to give generously to both local projects in Chicago and to international projects in their homeland. Vicky’s story shows the new transnational phenomenon of belonging to both worlds – here and there.

    “Huwag niyong kalilimutan! (Don’t forget!) Mark your calendar to attend the alumni’s weekend golf outing next month in Hoffman Estates,” she waved her hand in the air reminding everyone. “But most of all, we’ll be serving lechon (roast suckling pig on a stick). So everyone should be there!” So who said golf and lechon don’t mix? Vicky thinks they do.  Filipinos playing golf in the suburbs seems to epitomize the height of immigrant assimilation at the same time they make it uniquely Filipino, turning a standard American golf outing into a little fiesta of Filipino delicacies. Vicky Silvano and others like her are both rooted in their local communities here and linked to their communities back home. Her story reflects the new character of immigrant integration as she carves her own path for herself and her children at the same time doing a unique balancing act of belong here and there.

  • Overseas Filipinos The New Heroes? Many Suffer Risks and Dangers Working Abroad

    “Mapalad ka at nakarating ka sa abroad (You’re lucky you got to work abroad),” many people have shared with me this sentiment every time I visit the Philippines. Every year, the Philippine government hands out the Bagong Bayani (New Heroes) Award promoting Filipinos working abroad as Dakilang Manggagawa (Great Filipino Worker) representing the wealth abroad and limitless opportunities overseas (Marketing Dreams, Manufacturing Heroes, Guevarra, p 55).

    However, if you scratch just below the surface, you would find the cracks in the manufactured image of the overseas Filipino as a ‘hero’. You would see the many risks and dangers many workers faced as they leave the country out of desperation to seek opportunities abroad (Guevarra, p 58).

     

    Lolita Andrada Lledo, Associate Director, the Pilipino Workers Center in Los Angeles, CA

     

    In August 2010, I’ve met Ate Lolit of the Pilipino Workers Center in Los Angeles, CA. She works with Filipino caregivers in the Los Angeles area providing them with basic services including food staples from their food pantry. But most of all, she organizes them to protect their rights including giving the workers safe working conditions, living wages, decent living conditions and access to quality health care.

    I was shocked to find out Ate Lolit and the Pilipino Workers Center help many Filipino caregivers recover their hard-earned wages from employers who at times don’t give them their complete salaries.

    “Ay naku! Hindi lang iyan! Minsan pa inaabuso pa sila ng amo nila! (Not only that, they are even abused by their employers),” Ate Lolit said. “We helped many Filipino caregivers that suffered through brutal, human trafficking conditions.”

    I could not believe what she had told me! So I tried to find out for myself if it’s true. As I scratched just below the surface I found out that Ate Lolit’s experience helping abuses suffered by Filipino caregivers was not unique.

    I did a quick Internet search and immediately found out three recent cases of abuses, risks and dangers Filipinos and other overseas workers faced in the US and in other countries:

    1. Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  In August 2010, 350 Filipino teachers working in Louisiana filed a class action lawsuit against an international placement agency that abused many Filipino teachers. The lawsuit alleged that the agency charged the teachers exorbitant application fees and transportation and housing costs and demanded up to 30% of their salaries their first two years. “It was close to slavery,” said Mary Bauer, lead attorney in the lawsuit (USA Today News).

     

    Filipino domestic workers living at a makeshift shelter at the Philippine Embassy in Kuwait (New York Times PHOTO)

     

    2. Kuwait. In August 2010, the New York Times reported that many Nepalese and Filipino domestic workers suffer abuse in the hands of their employers.  With few legal protections against employers who choose not to pay servants, who push them too hard, or who abuse them, sometimes there is nothing left to do but run. The laws that do exist tend to err on the side of protecting employers, who often pay more than $2,000 upfront to hire the maids from the agencies that bring the women here (New York Times).

     

     

    Filipino undocumented children with their parents in Israel (photo courtesy of Manila Tel Aviv Filipino Magazine)

     

    3. Jerusalem, Israel. In August 2010, 400 children of foreign workers, mostly Filipinos, who have no legal status in the country and are slated for deportation.  Under the new Israeli guidelines, based on the length of time the children have been here and their integration in the education system, about 800 of the 1,200 in question are qualified to stay. Their parents and siblings will be entitled to temporary residence permits. The 400 who do not meet the criteria will have to leave (New York Times).

    Ate Lolit may be right. Many Filipinos and other overseas workers suffer many risks and dangers working abroad and that the manufactured image of the Filipino worker as a ‘hero’ may not be all what it’s cracked up to be.

  • Filipino Christians Providing Food Packages to Filipino Muslims during Ramadan

    On August 13,  James Castillo, a long-time volunteer at the Pilipino Workers Center in Los Angeles, asked me point blanked, “Is there hope for peace and prosperity in the Philippines?”

    I paused. I hesitated because I also doubted myself if it’s possible that Filipinos like me living abroad could help back home and make a difference. I took a deep breath and answered him, “Yes, without a doubt.”

    I reflected deeply on my answer to James whether it is possible for people working together to become agents of change and peace. On August 10, the holy month of Ramadan started in the Muslim world including in the southern island of Mindanao, Philippines, where many Filipino Muslims live. Muslims celebrate Ramadan as a time of intense devotion and reflection – a time when Muslims fast during the day and pray  during the night; when Muslims offer support to others to advance opportunity and peace for people everywhere.

    In the US, President Barack Obama hosted an iftar (meal) at the White House with friends, family and guests. “For all of us must remember that the world we want to build – and the changes that we want to make – must begin in our own hearts, and our own communities,” President Obama said celebrating Ramadan (White House press release).

    In the Philippines, the Bayanihan Foundation also celebrated the holy month of Ramadan by distributing food packages to over 1,500 people in three predominantly Muslim villages in Iligan City, Philippines in the southern island of Mindanao (see map below).

    Iligan City (highlighted in red) in the southern island of Mindanao, Philippines

    The Bayanihan Foundation partnered with the Rotary Club of Iligan South and the Zakat Foundation of America, an international charity organization that helps generous and caring people reach out to those in need.

    My uncle Vic and aunt Luz, members of the Rotary Club of Iligan South volunteered and helped distribute food packages containing rice, sardines, eggs, powdered milk, soap, pencils and paper for the children.

    My uncle Vic Saavedra (far left) of the Rotary Club of Iligan South distributing food packages to Filipino Muslims in Mindanao, Philippines
    Filipino Muslim families in Tambacan village, Iligan City receive food packages during Ramadan

    Uncle Vic, Aunt Luz and the many members of the Rotary Club of Iligan South volunteered many hours shopping, packaging and distributing over 1,500 gift packs for Filipino Muslims that live at or below poverty in Mindanao.  For decades, this southern island has been the epicenter of violence between Christians and Muslims living there.  If James Castillo asked his question to many Filipinos if peace is possible in Mindanao, many of them would say no.

    However, the Muslim families in Iligan City would probably say yes as they receive their gift packages from their Christian Filipino brothers who are members of the Rotary Club of Iligan South.  The 1,500 Filipino Muslims that received the food packages of precious rice, eggs and sardines might evolve to change their point of view as they reflect on the question peace in this holy month of Ramadan.

    These food packages will not solve the deep divide between Christians and Muslims in the island of Mindanao. But I’m hopeful that these food packages are a small step to healing.  I hesitated in answering James’ question if it’s possible to have peace and prosperity in the Philippines. However, I would not hesitate to say yes that these small steps of giving food packages to Filipino Muslims is moving us closer to peace.

  • Free Fundraising Workshops in CA, IL, NY and in Hong Kong

    Add the FREE fundraising workshop in Los Angeles, CA for Sunday, August 15, 2010 to your Google Calendar

    Add the FREE fundraising workshop in Chicago, IL scheduled for Saturday, August 28, 2010 to your Google Calendar Register online for the FREE fundraising workshop on Saturday, August 28, 2010 in Chicago, IL by clicking here

    In September 2010, fundraising workshops are also planned in New York and in New Jersey. Stay tuned for details!

    Later in the year, additional workshops are planned in Hong Kong and in Manila, Philippines.

    In January 2011, join us for an upcoming summit of Filipino diaspora donors and homeland partners in Manila, Philippines. Stay tuned for more details!

    Join us in learning to give more. “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”  – Gandhi

  • Hopeless, Packing up and Leaving For Abroad? Some Are Going Back to Make a Difference

    Don Quime, a Filipino living in England, posted a personal comment on Facebook that he left the Philippines because of his frustration of the mounting problems the country is facing. “You have no other option but to stay abroad,” he commented. I agree with him that many Filipinos are faced with no other option but to leave the country to seek a better life for their families. However, I disagree with his suggestion that the idea that the situation back home is so hopeless that the only alternative is to leave and to stay there!

    The situation in the Philippines and in many developing countries are tough and the challenges are enormous but it is not hopeless. The problems are great but we should not run away from it. I want to highlight two examples, Dr. Manny Cacdac of Indiana and Tim Troutman of North Carolina who do not think the situation is hopeless. They are going back, setting up projects in the Philippines so they can make a difference in their own way.

    Dr. Manny Cacdac of Indiana recently set up The Hydrocephalus Foundation of the Philippines

    Dr. Manny Cacdac and the Hydrocephalus Foundation of the Philippines

    Meet Dr. Manny Cacdac.  He had performed countless surgeries in volunteer medical missions to the Philippines for decades. He had saved the lives of thousands of babies from Hydrocephalus, an abnormal buildup of the brain’s normal water-like fluid, cerebrospinal fluid or CSF.  Dr. Cacdac shared with me his frustration with the Philippine bureaucracy and the endless red tape as he tried to do life saving hydrocephalus operations in the Philippines.  He should have just ran away from his frustration of an inadequate medical system in the Philippines, the endless bureaucracy and just enjoy his retirement abroad.

    On the contrary, Manny, his wife Ate Fe and many other supporters recently set up the Hydrocephalus Foundation of the Philippines to save more babies suffering from hydrocephalus. Does Dr. Cacdac think the situation back home is challenging? Yes. Does he think the situation is hopeless? No. Dr. Cacdac is going back so he can make a difference.

    Tim Troutman of North Carolina (on the left) with his family, set up the Philippine Aid Society (photo courtesy of Philippine Aid Society website)

    Tim Troutman of the Philippine Aid Society

    Meet Tim Troutman. Tim, his wife and many supporters established the Philippine Aid Society to offer feeding, caring for, education, and employing the poor that live near Metro Manila, Philippines. Tim reported at their website that they were shipping two large cargo boxes of used clothing and school supplies for the poor.

    In addition, Tim’s brother, Steve, and his wife Katy, are moving to Manila to set up a soup kitchen for the poor.  “They have decided that God is calling them to work with Philippine Aid Society by fighting the extreme poverty in the Philippines,” Tim commented on his blog.

    “Of course, they will be taking a big step down as far as living conditions in their move from suburban America to the urban Metro-Manila. This is a sacrifice that they have decided to make to serve the less fortunate,” Tim said.

    The poverty situation in the Philippines is enormous. Poverty rates increased from 24.4% to 26.9%  (Philippine National Statistical Coordination Board facts). In 2007, more and more Filipino families are earning less than $1 a day to feed a family of five with 4.7 million more families totaling 27.6 million living in poverty.  (World Health Organization 2006) (National Statistical Coordination Board) (Philippine Inquirer News Service April 2010)

    Does Tim and his supporters at Philippine Aid Society think that the poverty situation in the Philippines is challenging? Yes. Do they think the situation is hopeless? No.  Tim and his supporters are helping and going back so they can make a difference.

    Can you also make a difference in your own way?

  • New York Times reports sweatshop labor conditions for foreign workers

    The New York Times reported that foreign workers, mostly Filipino and Chinese workers were lured to training jobs in Japan but the workers were subjected to unpaid overtime, sweatshop conditions, physical and verbal attacks and horrible working conditions.

    Filipino and many other foreign workers are faced with so much peril and risks seeking employment abroad for a better life for their families.  We should work on long-term solutions so these workers in the near future can have a choice – either to work in the Philippines or work abroad. Right now, there is no other choice but to leave.

    Click on the link below to see the video:

    New York Times reports: training programs or sweatshop?

  • Billionaires Make Headlines Giving Away Their Wealth, While Many Unsung Heroes Continue Giving Without Fanfare

    “You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.” Kahlil Gibran

    On July 15, 2010, New York Times reported with fanfare that Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft Corporation, plans to give more than half of his estimated $13.5 billion fortune to philanthropy. Warren Buffett, ranked as the world’s richest man, also announced that he will give half his fortune worth $44 billion to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (Washington Post). All of the sudden, giving is in fashion as billionaires make front page headlines giving away their money.

    Giving is always in fashion.  It never really went out of style, according to Thang Pil Mung, Tess Domdom and Rachel Lafontant as they continue their giving and helping others without any fanfare.  Thang, Tess and Rachel are not billionaires; I doubt that their personal stories of giving will ever make front page headlines like Bill Gates and Warren Buffet. Nevertheless, these unsung heroes are committed to make a difference in people’s lives and their stories deserve to be heard.

    Thang Pil Mung photo (Facebook photo)

    Meet Thang Pil Mung, a Burmese refugee who’s finishing his undergraduate degree at North Park University in Chicago. Earlier this week, I had coffee with Thang and he shared with me his wonderful plans to offer English-as-a-Second Language (ESL) classes to his fellow Burmese in Chicago at the same time he wants to fund a missionary to continue their community outreach in Myanmar. He has many exciting plans to help the Burmese community in Chicago and in Myanmar. Thang does not have billions of dollars to give but he plans to give a lot of himself to make his plans come true.

    Tess Domdom (Facebook photo)

    Meet Tess Domdom, a Filipina domestic worker based in Hong Kong. Last weekend, I spoke with Tess over the phone and she was excited as we talked about putting together a medical mission for her hometown in Samar island, Philippines. Tess have been planning these for months. In addition, she invited me to conduct workshops in Hong Kong soon to encourage other Filipino community leaders there to also give back. Tess does not have billions of dollars to give but she plans to give a lot of herself to make her plans come true.

    ITIAH Arts Gallery by Rachel La Fontant (Facebook photo)

    Meet Rachel La Fontant; she owns ITIAH Arts Gallery, a small Haitian arts gallery in Chicago’s Rogers Park neighborhood, located north of the city.  She features authentic Haitian crafts that supports local artists in Haiti. I met with Rachel before her trip to Haiti where she plans to rehabilitate a local artisan workshop in Haiti. Rachel also plans to train unemployed Haitian youth the art of creating Haitian crafts that will hopefully give them sustainable employment.  In addition she plans to bring Haitian artwork back to Chicago to sell and support her wonderful plans for Haitian local art and long-term sustainability in Haiti.  Rachel does not have billions of dollars to give but she plans to give a lot of herself to make her plans come true.

    We don’t need to accumulate billions of dollars to make a difference.  The personal stories of Thang, Tess and Rachel show that they are the true heroes of giving. I know that there are millions of unsung heroes like them around the world who are trying to make a difference in their own way but without any fanfare.

    Do you know a personal hero who also is giving without fanfare? Share your story here.

  • Filipino Workers in the Diaspora Broke? Think Again! Many Have Money To Spend, Untapped Market as Donors and Consumers

    Minerva (standing in center) waits with her friends for their tour bus to see Israel's historical sites

    Last June 12, 2010, I spent my weekend in Israel with Minerva and Daisy Beth and hundreds of Filipino caregivers in Israel enjoying a fun weekend trip, riding in a comfortable tourist coach bus and seeing Israel’s tourist sites.

    I estimated that all the Filipino caregivers that weekend must have spent  $80,000 to $100,000 US dollars in bus travel, hotel costs, meals and souvenirs, perhaps even more. Filipino workers in the diaspora clearly have money to spend.

    Who said that Filipino contract workers in the diaspora are broke and don’t have any expendable income? Think again! I think the Filipino workers in the diaspora are an untapped market as consumers and as potential donors to help back in the Philippines.

    That weekend coincided with the Philippine Independence Day celebration and that many Filipino caregivers had a rare treat of having two days off in a row. So many of them planned special outings and trips that weekend.  So I joined Minnie and her friends  excited to go out-of-town and to enjoy the sights of Israel.  I thought we were going on a small excursion with a bunch of friends. I was wrong!  I saw at least five tour buses parked in front of Levinsky Park, a park in Tel Aviv where many Filipino caregivers congregate. I heard that there were several more trips being planned for the next two days as well.

    About 50 excited Filipino caregivers squeezed inside our tour bus to capacity.  We rode on the bus for seven hours one way. We enjoyed floating on the Dead Sea and watching tropical fish and dolphins in the resort town of Eilat, overlooking the Red Sea near Egypt.  Some of them even ventured even further to see the historical sites in Palestine and in the Golan Heights.

    On the way back, we stopped by at an outlet store of Dead sea minerals and health products. I thought many of them would just do window shopping. Think again! We spent at least one hour at the outlet store as many Filipino caregivers stocked up and enjoyed the beauty products on sale.

    My stereotype of overseas Filipino workers were shattered. The Filipino workers in the diaspora workers are not broke. They have expendable income to spend on weekend trips and souvenirs.

    These overseas workers are also an untapped market as consumers.  Many of the trips in Israel that weekend were self-organized. Travel agencies and other  businesses should pay more attention to them. I believe many businesses in Israel are starting to do so. The Tel Aviv bus terminal is full of grocery stores, clothing stores, cell phone kiosks and many small shops that cater to them.

    More importantly, these Filipino caregivers have expendable income to give as potential donors for development projects in the Philippines.