The Department of Foreign Affairs said Thursday there are enough funds to help migrant Filipino workers affected by the COVID-2019 pandemic.
Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs Sarah Arriola said while the COVID-19 pandemic had depleted the P1-billion allocation to help distressed migrant workers, the department still had a substantial amount left from the Bayanihan to Recover As One Act to allow them to help the workers.
Foreign Affairs was also allocated P200 million for the legal assistance fund, Arriola said.
“We were granted P820 million and there’s still a substantial amount that’s still with us for COVID response that is in Bayanihan 2. And since Bayanihan 2 will be extended, we have the resources to respond to COVID,” Arriola said in a virtual press conference in Bahrain.
“So we have resources to care for our people. They just really have to reach out to our post, or even to DFA through [Facebook]. And anyone who needs help, we are willing to give help.”
Arriola, along with Presidential Assistant for Foreign Affairs Robert E.A. Borje, the special envoy of President Rodrigo Duterte, are in Bahrain for an official visit until Dec. 31.
According to Borje, apart from strengthening ties with Bahrain, they also plan to repatriate as many migrant Filipinos as possible who have been affected by the pandemic.
“We note that there is a need to bring home Filipinos for many reasons. But of course we want them, first and foremost, to be safe and secure,” Borje said.
“Bahrain has played an important part because it has essentially become a hub of repatriation operations for the Philippines.”
Upon their arrival there on Dec. 29, the DFA was able to repatriate 2,085 migrant Filipinos from Bahrain, Beirut and Syria.
“When we return home to the Philippines on December 31st, we will be bringing with us around 300 overseas Filipinos from Manama and also from Abu Dhabi and Dubai,” Borje said.
That would bring to 323,436 Filipinos the Philippine government has repatriated from all over the world through 59 chartered flights and 1,200 commercial flights since it started the lockdown in March 2020.
