2,061 Saudi OFWs receive aid amid flight Disruptions

A total of 2,061 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Saudi Arabia have received assistance from the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) following flight cancellations and delays amid ongoing tensions in the Middle East.

The beneficiaries included 1,765 OFWs in Riyadh, 260 in Jeddah and 36 in Al Khobar. They received food, temporary accommodation, transportation, financial assistance, and medical and psychological services.

A total of 199 OFWs and their family dependents have returned to the Philippines since 19 October through the coordination of OWWA and the Migrant Workers Office in Riyadh.

The government also assisted OFWs who temporarily lost their jobs following the suspension of airport operations in Riyadh.

Meanwhile, 114 OFWs in Manila received government assistance due to flight cancellations at Ninoy Aquino International Airport terminals.

Aside from providing assistance in Saudi Arabia and facilitating repatriation, the DMW, in cooperation with government agencies under the National Reintegration Network, is prepared to assist OFWs upon their return to the country.

In a separate development, Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac visited the wake of an OFW who died in a bus crash in Germany, held in Batangas.

Cacdac conveyed the government’s condolences to the bereaved family and discussed the assistance available to them.

He assured the family that the DMW would provide legal assistance in pursuing justice for the OFW’s death. Cacdac also provided initial financial assistance to help meet the immediate needs of the worker’s children.