Who is Patricia Yvonne Caunan, new OWWA administrator?

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The former Department of Migrant Workers undersecretary replaces sacked OWWA chief Arnell Ignacio

A new leader is taking the helm of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) with the appointment of Patricia Yvonne “PY” Caunan, who is jumping from her role as undersecretary of the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW).

She replaces television personality Arnell Ignacio, who had been President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s first OWWA chief since 2022. Ignacio was sacked over an allegedly anomalous P1.4-billion land acquisition deal that did not go through the OWWA Board of Trustees.

The OWWA’s new leader is a lawyer who has spearheaded the DMW’s bilateral labor negotiations for three years. The OWWA is the DMW’s attached agency dedicated to welfare programs for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

Here are some things to know about new OWWA administrator Caunan.

Lawyer

Caunan is a lawyer by profession. According to her LinkedIn profile, she obtained her bachelor’s degree in management of financial institutions from De La Salle University before taking up law at the University of the Philippines (UP).

In law school, she was president of UP Women in Law.

From 2013 to 2022, Caunan was managing partner at Caunan Law Office in Makati City. She developed an expertise in labor, civil, administrative, and criminal law.

Inaugural DMW undersecretary

Caunan was one of the inaugural top officials of the DMW when it became fully constituted under the Marcos administration. Marcos appointed her as undersecretary for policy and international cooperation under the leadership of the late DMW secretary Susan “Toots” Ople. She continued working in the position under Ople’s successor, incumbent Secretary Hans Cacdac.

Caunan’s former office is in charge of handling bilateral labor talks and developing policies related to migration governance.

Her office is also in charge of monitoring the Philippines’ implementation of international obligations and commitments.

During her almost three-year tenure, Caunan helped negotiate and facilitate the signing of 15 bilateral labor migration agreements aimed at enhancing the protection and welfare of OFWs.

Some of these agreements included those with Canada, Austria, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Finland, Denmark, Singapore, Croatia, Slovenia, and Kuwait.

On her first day as OWWA administrator, Caunan promised to expand the agency’s scholarship programs, not just for OFWs’ children, but also for OFWs themselves. – Rappler.com