Secretary of State for Vocational Training and Employment (SEPFOPE) Ilidio Ximenes da Costa said Timorese workers in South Korea sent $1,7 million to home to their families.
He said no Timorese workers other than those in South Korea were able to send so much money home to their parents.
He said this proved the worth of SEPFOPE’s program to send the people out to Korea so they could earn money and gain knowledge.
“Particularly some people in Ermera district use the money to hold funerals and weddings or engagement parties, but there are some who use it to build a house, school and some to supplement family income,” SE da Costa said in Balide, Dili.
Banco Nacional Ultramarino(BNU)has released data revealing that it was mostly women workers who send money home to their families, meaning more attention should be paid to women in the work force as women are capable of earning money.
Secretary of State for the Promotion of Equality (SEPI) Idelta Maria Rodrigues said it was mostly women workers who send money to their families because it was normally women who managed the finances, not men.
“Women know more about management than men,” SE Rodrigues said.
The mother of Esperansa Gaspar, a Timorese worker currently in South Korea, said her daughter sent money dependent on how much that they requested from her.
She said families did not demand money without good reason, but needed the money for things such as paying the school fees for the workers’ younger siblings.
