OWWA: 21 OFWs from Israel to arrive in PH on July 3
Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Administrator Patricia Yvonne Caunan confirmed the arrival and emphasized the Philippine government's continued commitment to monitoring and assisting OFWs affected by the regional conflict.
'Bukas po, may paparating po tayo na 21 pa na galing Israel at sa Sabado po may parating na 15 at inaasahan pa tayong 28 na darating," Cuanan said at the Bagong Pilipinas public briefing on Wednesday.
(Tomorrow, 21 OFWs from Israel will be arriving, with 15 more expected on Saturday and 28 more in the coming days.)
Since tensions escalated in Israel, over 373 OFWs have contacted OWWA to express their intention to return home, though only 26 have finalized their decision to be repatriated as of this week.
'Pero after namin sila tawag-tawagan sa OWWA, kami nga ang nangungulit, ay 26 pa lang ang repatriated o nag-desisyon na bumalik sa Pilipinas,' said Cuanan.
(But after following up with them—it's really us who are persistently checking—only 26 have actually been repatriated or decided to return to the Philippines.)
Administrator Cuanan assured that despite a ceasefire and the lowering of Israel's alert level to 2, the Philippine government continues to monitor developments across the Middle East, particularly in countries with large Filipino populations such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Kuwait.
'Patuloy na nagmo-monitor ang gobyerno sa sitwasyon sa Gitnang Silangan... Marami tayong kababayan sa Israel, almost more than 30,000.'
(The government continues to monitor the situation in the Middle East... We have over 30,000 Filipinos in Israel.)
Apart from Israel, eight OFWs from Iran also recently returned home, and more are expected to follow.
Administrator Caunan then detailed the assistance provided to returning OFWs such as medical support, financial aid, accommodation, and psychosocial counseling.
She highlighted specific cases, such as a pregnant OFW and another diagnosed with cancer.
'Meron tayong sinalubong na buntis at sabi ni Sec. Herbosa, Department of Health ang sasagot ng lahat ng gagastusin niya sa kanyang panganganak. Meron din tayong kababayan na bumalik na may cancer... tutulungan sa libreng pagamot ng ating gobyerno.'
(We welcomed a pregnant OFW, and Secretary Herbosa of the Department of Health promised full support for her childbirth. We also had a returnee with cancer who will receive free treatment from the government.)
She also mentioned interest among returnees in starting anew, where some are exploring entrepreneurship, while others inquire about local and overseas job opportunities.
'Very interested kami sa upskilling and job matching. Mayroong 8 million online jobs available at may libreng training para ma-qualify dito.'
(We're very interested in upskilling and job matching. There are 8 million online jobs available with free training to help them qualify.)
She affirmed that a partnership with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is underway to support this effort. —VAL, GMA Integrated News
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