With the current economic situation in the Philippines, Filipinos are once again projected to seek for “better pastures” again.
Recently, Filipinos have found another “land of milk and honey” – Israel, the original “land of milk and honey.”
Earlier this month, a group of Filipinos went to Israel for a pilgrimage tour. Two of their members reportedly decided to remain after the tour to try their luck in Israel.
So why Israel?
Employment
Israeli Ambassador Ilan Fluss said that there are about 30,000 Filipinos working in Israel, majority of whom are caregivers.
“We need caregivers and Filipinos are close to our hearts, as many of us employ Filipino caregivers, including my father-in-law. They live in our homes and get all the social rights, pensions, medical insurance and benefits being mandated by law,” Fluss said in an interview with Daily Tribune.
But caregiving is far from the only opportunity for Filipinos in Israel.
As a matter of fact, earlier this January, Israel requested an additional 1,200 workers to the current 750 workers in the hotel industry to cater to the booming tourism industry in their country.
In terms of salary, the Economic Research Institute says the average pay for a caregiver is 77,144 Israeli shekels yearly. That’s equivalent to almost a million pesos.
Education
Israel is ranked the fifth most educated country in the world by Erudera but ranked ninth in terms of spending per student in higher education in 2022.
In 2018, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development ranked Israel third as the most educated country in the world.
For healthcare, Israel is ranked 30th in the best healthcare in the world by CEOWORLD Healthcare Index in 2021 and 6th in the 2022 World Index of Healthcare Innovation.
Security
Israel has been rated the fifth safest nation for tourists to visit based on the website The Swiftest.
The study was based on data pooled from public reports by a collection of global organizations such as the UN, WHO, World Bank and more.
Despite what media portray and the image of a never-ending war in Israel – particularly in the Arab-majority Palestine region – the country’s advanced military sufficient has ensured that Israelis remain safe from terrorism in the past years.