The legacy of the late DMW Secretary Toots Ople

She’s gone but certainly not forgotten as the legacy left by Department of Migrant Workers Secretary Susan "Toots” Ople continues to live on in
the response approaches and the policy-making to ensure the welfare of the overseas Filipino workers around the world.

Three of the prominent battles fought by Ople was to end the cycle of working abroad in a family through aggressive financial education and wise investment, establishing reliable communication line between the government and the OFWs, and leadership by example by her presence at the frontline of conflict-torn areas to secure distressed OFWs.
 

All of these became the blueprint of government approaches in ensuing OFW concerns after her death. A recent example is the aggressive assistance to Filipinos affected by the Hamas-Israel conflict in the Middle East.

The DMW has been also aggressive to forge partnerships with various government agencies and other stakeholders to provide alternative jobs and business investments for OFWs, the recent was the agreement with the Department of Tourism for tourism-related jobs and business opportunities.