A surge in the number of overseas Filipino workers (OFW) bound for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and the possible opening of new destination countries in Europe will lift the deployment figures this year, according to the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW).
In a press briefing in Malacañang last Tuesday, DMW Secretary Susan V. Ople said the agency is working to increase the number of deployed OFWs.
From July to November 2022, Ople said DMW was able to deploy 486,673 OFWs. Of which, 352,911 were land-based, while the remaining 219,869 were sea-based.
“One of our key objectives is to increase the number of deployed OFWs for this year,” she said.
Booking issues
DMW said it expects to send around 6,000 newly hired OFWs to KSA in the first quarter alone.
This after the department resumed the verification of new contracts for Saudi-bound OFWs last November.
“They just encountered problems in the booking of flights since it coincided with the holiday season. So that is where they had difficulties. But these [deployment] numbers will continue to grow,” Ople said.
KSA is one of the top destination countries for OFWs.
New destinations
Ople also said the pending bilateral labor talks are expected to open doors to several emerging markets in Europe once they are finalized.
“We have invitations pending for bilateral labor talks with Romania, Hungary and Portugal,” she said.
The deployment for Portugal will cover Filipino tourism workers, according to Ople.
She said the agency is exploring the possibility of deploying Filipino caregivers to Hong Kong.
“I met with the Minister of Labor and Welfare of Hong Kong (on January 9), Minister Chris Sun, and he broached the possibility of exploratory talks on the deployment of Filipino caregivers to Hong Kong – but this is still in the early, early stage. We need to send a team to Hong Kong to meet with his team as well,” Ople said.
Expanded operations
To accommodate the expected increase in their clients this year, Ople said the agency was allocated a P15.8-billion budget under the 2023 General Appropriations Act (GAA).
She said part of the budget will be used for establishing 16 regional offices as well as filling-up around 1,000 vacancies.
The DMW chief said the agency will also open new Migrant Workers offices in Thailand, Guam, and two other locations.