Every year millions of women and men in the ASEAN region leave their homes to work abroad. Many of them share the same dream about earning a better income, saving for their future, and sending money home. Labour migration can be a powerful strategy to fulfil personal and family financial goals, but it also involves many risks and costs that too often override its wished-for benefits.

This Save Smart training manual, and its accompanying Save Smart financial planner, encourage those considering labour migration to think about their financial goals, weigh the benefits and risks of migration, calculate their migration costs, and consider different options for financing their migration. The tools also help prospective migrant workers to visualize the steps they can take while working abroad to budget their income and expenses, save money, send money home, and protect themselves against risks.

This training manual includes a training programme consisting of nine training modules. The tools included in this manual can also be used as standalone counselling aids when providing advice to women and men migrant workers seeking guidance on financial decisions relating to migration.