Poland-based Filipino academics urged to 'give back' to PH

WARSAW, Poland – It has always been Jaime Bonifacio Jr.'s plan to study abroad and equip himself with the knowledge and skills to become an "effective public health leader."
 
The 35-year-old student is completing the Governance and Economics of Health Systems in Transition track for the two-year Erasmus Mundus European Public Health Master program at the Jagiellonian University in Krakow. He spent the program's first half at the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom.
 
"I love my country and am deeply committed to contributing to its progress," Bonifacio said of his plan to return to the Philippines upon finishing his postgraduate degree.
 
Bonifacio was among the Poland-based Filipino students and researchers who joined a gathering co-organized by a group of academics and the Philippine Embassy in Warsaw on November 23.
 
In her address, Philippine Ambassador to Poland Leah Basinang-Ruiz highlighted the students' "critical and special role" in promoting, expanding, and intensifying Philippine-Poland relations and encouraged them to participate in the embassy's activities.
 
She also expressed her hope for many Filipino students in Poland to "contribute to our efforts for development back in the Philippines" by giving back to the country during and after their studies, and even if they intend to "stay and be part of Polish society" or other European nations.
 
"We are Filipino migrants [and] you have this capacity of helping [Philippine] embassies all over the world project the Philippines—our economy, politics, society, the Filipino values and culture. In effect, you are one of the ambassadors of the Philippines overseas. Please have that thinking because then, you wouldn't be focusing only on yourself but also interacting with Filipinos here. As you would like to do, engage with your embassy or consulates wherever you are, and help our country develop and progress," Basinang-Ruiz said.

Balik Scientist Program

The ambassador's keynote speech prefaced the introduction of First Secretary and Consul Alena Grace Borra on the Balik Scientist Program (BSP) of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).
 
Launched through a presidential decree in 1975, BSP has urged "Filipino scientists, technologists, and experts" to return to the country to "share their expertise in order to promote scientific, agro-industrial, and economic development."
 
The Philippine government strengthened the program through Republic Act (RA) 11035 or the Balik Scientist Act, which was passed in June 2018. This law expanded BSP's incentives and benefits for returning scientists, including relocation packages, increased salary, housing or accommodation allowance, insurance coverage, and special funding for research projects.

Borra said many BSP experts are involved in the program's priority areas of agriculture, aquatic, and natural resources sector (28.4 percent) and the health industry (27.9 percent). She also relayed the invitation of DOST's Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development (PCIEERD) to Poland-based students to join the program's priority area in the industry, energy, and emerging technology sector, which currently has the most returning experts (47.7 percent).
 
"While we recognize that Poland is a relatively new destination for Filipino academics and scientists for higher education and research, there is still value in creating awareness this early about such a program," Borra added.
 
Some students in the gathering, like Bonifacio, expressed appreciation for the BSP's concept.

"I see the program as a wonderful way to inspire and incentivize the return of Filipino scholars and scientists to the Philippines, especially as the country seeks to expand its research capabilities and strengthen its community of experts," he said.

Meanwhile, 25-year-old postgraduate student John Warren Tamor commended the program, but also asked the government to "address the challenges faced by local researchers" first.
 
"Researchers—who are underpaid and overworked—are forced to take on multiple jobs just to make ends meet, compromising their ability to engage in meaningful academic work. Low compensation not only affects retention but also diminishes the quality of instruction," Tamor said.
 
Nonetheless, Tamor said returning home after his fourth and final semester in Austria is a "viable option."
 
"I would consider it for myself, once structural reforms are implemented to create an environment where both homegrown and returning scientists can truly thrive," said Tamor, who is completing his third semester for the Master of Science in Transition, Innovation, and Sustainability Environments (TISE) program at the Poznan University of Economics and Business (PUEB) in Warsaw.

Prospects in Poland

Lorico Lapitan Jr., who is an assistant professor at Warsaw University of Technology, proposed the gathering to Basinang-Ruiz in a meeting after a Filipino basketball tournament in the Polish city of Poznan in May 2024.
 
Lapitan and his co-organizers Jayson Pasahol and Hazel Kato-Caingles eventually invited 56 attendees, including current students, alumni, and visiting researchers from various Polish academic institutions.

Jess Raymundo, who takes her Master's in Teaching English to Young Learners at the University of Warsaw, grabbed the opportunity to study in Poland, which she found to be an "attractive destination for international students."
 
Previously based in Japan as a preschool teacher, the 34-year-old postgraduate student enjoys the program's extensive pedagogical training in the content and language integrated learning (CLIL) approach. Raymundo hopes to use her experience to understand the differences and similarities between early childhood and primary education in the Philippines, Japan, and Poland.

Raymundo said he would consider returning home if there was an equivalent program for returning experts in non-scientific fields to share professional experiences to help Filipino educators improve access to quality education for Filipino children. However, she still plans to find employment in Poland.

"The situation in the [Philippine] education system has not changed that much... I don't want to speak for everybody, but I think [the issue about low] compensation is a huge factor in why people opt to work abroad, hence, the [ongoing] brain drain. For now, the best I can do while living abroad to help Filipino teachers is to collaborate, train, and share best practices with them through virtual exchanges like what we are doing at the university now," Raymundo added.
 
Meanwhile, the other postgraduate students at the gathering encourage Filipinos to apply for scholarship opportunities abroad.

"Despite the frustrations and disappointments we may feel with our country, there is strength in our identity," Tamor said.

"Carry our Filipino [identity] with you wherever you go... We may encounter different ways of thinking and working, but don't lose sight of what makes us uniquely Filipino."
 
"[Studying abroad] will broaden your perspectives, provide new ideas on how to serve your country better, and help you realize that there is so much more to be done in the Philippines—perhaps even inspiring you to pursue these goals after your studies," Bonifacio added. — VDV, GMA Integrated News