Total number of Filipinos repatriated from Middle Eastern country since start of COVID-19 pandemic now at 3,000
(Eagle News) — The Department of Foreign Affairs repatriated over 300 distressed overseas Filipinos from the United Arab Emirates over the weekend, bringing the total of repatriates from that country since the start of the pandemic to 3,000.
According to the DFA, the 350 overseas Filipinos included 112 pregnant Filipinos and 12 persons with disabilities.
They arrived in the Davao International Airport on Sunday morning.
The department said this was the seventh chartered flight from the UAE since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are working double time to make sure our kababayans in distress get the much-needed repatriation the soonest. Pregnant women, PWDs and those with special needs are given due consideration to expedite their return home,” Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs Sarah Lou Y. Arriola said.
According to the DFA, the Philippine government’s repatriation was made possible by its Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs (OUMWA), with the assistance of the Philippine Embassy in Abu Dhabi, the Philippine Consulate General in Dubai, and the Regional Consular Office in Davao (DFA RCO Davao).
In addition to their return flight ticket, the government also gave the repatriates a quarantine facility and swab test free of charge.
All repatriates received a P10,000 reintegration assistance, in line with the instructions of President Rodrigo Duterte and as recommended by Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin, Jr.
