Professor Emely Abagat and Sister Lucia Olalia, active leaders of the Filipino community in South Korea, are among the twenty-four (24) awardees to be conferred the 2010 Presidential Awards for Filipino Individuals and Organizations overseas.

Professor Abagat and Sister Luz Olalia were chosen to receive the Banaag Award. The award is given to Filipino and foreign individuals or associations for advancing the cause of Filipino communities overseas, or for supporting specific sectors/ communities in the Philippines. The 24 awardees came from United States, Hong Kong, South Korea, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Australia, Germany and Canada. His Excellency President Benigno S. Aquino III will honor the awardees on 14 December 2010 at the Malacanang Palace. This year, the Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO), being the Awards Secretariat, received 110 nominations from 23 countries. The nominees underwent screening from three different committees with representatives from government agencies, media, academe, religious and business sectors. The Awards is a biennial awards system institutionalized through Executive Order 498 signed by former President Corazon C. Aquino in 1991. It recognizes the achievements and significant contributions of Filipino individuals and organizations overseas to communities here and abroad. It is also a part of the activities in celebration of the Month of Overseas Filipinos and International Migrants Day this December. From 2003 to 2008, there have been 314 individuals and organizations from 42 countries and territories. Past awardees from South Korea include the Filipino Korean Spouses Association and the Hyehwadong Filipino Catholic Community.