OVERSEAS Filipino workers (OFWs) have long been called the “modern heroes” of the country, and the tag has been validated even more so with the global financial crisis, as the Philippine economy continues to rely strongly on remittances that OFWs send home every month.

However, with their desire to give their families a comfortable life, their absence from the home often means a weakening of their relationship with their relatives, in many cases leading to the phenomenon of broken marriages, children led astray and disputes over money among the members left at home.

An estimated 8 million OFWs are deployed all over the world, making the Philippines one of the biggest labor service providers globally.

According to Abot Tanaw chairman Ephraim Genuino, because of their desire to give their children a better life, OFWs are forced to work abroad to seek greener pastures at the risk of losing or weakening the foundation of the family.

One example is Benito (not his real name), 36 years old, a seaman in a cruise ship who found out that his wife was cheating on him.

“We are now separated, she’s living by her own now and I am living with our only daughter,” Benito said to the BusinessMirror.

His wife, Haydee (not her real name), said she was prompted to have an affair when she found out that Benito has a girlfriend in his workplace.

“At first I just wanted to get even. But with his long absence, I fell out of love. Then you realize it’s not all money that matters. Sometimes the relationship can suffer,” she confessed.

Benito has been working abroad for almost seven years now, returning every two years and staying in the country for only two months. “After we separated, I asked management to give me a different schedule. Now, I work only for six month then come home for two months,” he says. In his first year as a single parent, the adviser of his 11-year-old-daughter called his attention to Joanne’s “poor” performance in school.

These days, things are better, her schoolwork has improved, so as a reward, he showers her with things.

When he is on the ship, his hired nanny takes care of his daughter, even assisting her with her homework. They recently moved in to his parents’ house so Joanne can be guided well while he is away.

Communication is key:  “I believe that communication is the key to keeping the family’s foundation stable,” Genuino said in his speech at the launching of Abot Tanaw Socal Media Network at the SMX Mall of Asia, Pasay City.

To address the negative social impact of migration, the Abot Tanaw Social Media Network was created to enable all OFWs and families to communicate with each other via video conference for free.

“We wanted to create an idea where we bridge the distance between OFWs and their families, [making them] more accessible and affordable. Hearing the voice is good but nothing beats looking at a face while talking. The Internet is too complicated for many of our OFWs and it is too public,” he said.

Abot Tanaw offers free voice and video telephony services to OFWs. It has service hubs strategically located in various parts of the Philippines.

Through these service hubs, OFWs in Hong Kong now have the chance to connect with their families back here. Soon to open are hubs in Singapore, Macau and Dubai, all offering highly advanced communication infrastructure and patented technology.

“Abot Tanaw makes accessible to OFWs and their families the means to communicate without charging them. Using newly developed technology that involves voice and video telephony services, Abot Tanaw is able to lessen the proverbial toll that separation takes on Filipino families,” Abot Tanaw chief executive officer Kim Go said.

The vision of Abot Tanaw takes full advantage of web-based technologies to provide valuable free communication access to families.

“This is a boon to OFW families that cannot afford mobile and Internet subscriptions and investments in hardware such as computers, mobile and PC phones,” Go added.

In order to provide the services, it is setting up service hubs, or its technical communication centers, inside SM Malls. These service hubs contain call stations or call centers that deliver voice, video and telephony services to families of OFWs.

“There will be booths in the SM Malls where, for the first few months, video conferencing will be offered for free to OFWs,” Go confirmed.

Access to Abot Tanaw’s services require membership registration, and members can already use all the benefits that this teleconference hubs are offering.

The project was made possible through the help of the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co., Department of Labor and Employment and SM Group of Companies.