A House leader on Friday batted for the passage of a measure providing a package of incentives and privileges to entice scientists and highly-skilled technicians of Filipino descent to work in the Philippines over the short or long term.
Camarines Sur Rep. LRay Villaguerte urged the leadership of the House of Representatives to prioritize the passage of his House Bill 6057., or the proposed "Balik-Scientists’’ Program.
The bill mandates the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) to institutionalize the over four-decade-old Balik-Scientist program to encourage Filipino scientists and technicians based overseas to return to the Philippines and share their skills here.
To attract Filipino science professionals to return home, Villafuerte has proposed various benefits and incentives such as medical and accident insurance, Professional Regulations Commission (PRC) registration and special non-immigrant visas for those who have already acquired foreign citizenship.
Under HB 6057, Balik Scientists are also given full subsidy on their round-trip airfare to and from the Philippines, relocation allowance, and housing by pre-determined host institutions.