Manila: Manila has expressed concern over job security and overall situation of Filipino expatriate workers in the Middle East, particularly in Saudi Arabia, Iran as well as Qatar.
According to Secretary Herminio Coloma of the Presidential Communications and Operations Office, the government is concerned over developments in Qatar, particularly those pertaining to the job security of overseas Filipino workers following the implementation of a new labour policy governing education requirements.
Reports reaching Manila said Qatar’s Supreme Education Council has issued new rules governing the basic education requirement that prescribes 12-year basic education, or a total of 16 years of education for foreign workers to be able to be registered as professionals.
Once implemented, Coloma said the new policy would affect around 12,000 Filipino engineers and architects, who cannot register with Qatar’s Urban Planning and Development Authority (UPDA) because they only have 10 years of basic education.
There are an estimated 200,000 Filipino expatriate workers in Qatar.
“We are closely monitoring the situation,” Coloma said, adding that the Philippine government is not only monitoring the situation in Qatar, but in other areas of the world as well,” Coloma said on Sunday in an interview aired over government-run radio station dzRB.
According to Coloma, Labour Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz and representatives from the Philippines Commission on Higher Education and the Professional Regulation Commission) are due to meet with Qatari officials to discuss the issue.
“Despite these developments, Baldoz said Filipino expatriate workers, particularly engineers and architects will no be seriously displaced by new regulations because we believe Qatar remains dependent on the services of foreign workers. Up to now, we are yet to receive actual word from Qatar on the matter concerning the new ruling on professionals,” Coloma said.
The new regulations on expat professional workers also came at the back of reports of simmering tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran.
Hosting an estimated one million Filipino workers, Saudi Arabia is considered by the Philippine government as the biggest employer of its expatriate labour.
Last Friday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) held a meeting with its diplomats posted in the Middle East and North Africa to discuss contingency plans in the event of conflict breaks out between Saudi Arabia and Iran. Relations between the two countries had been on tenterhooks since late last year.
DFA Spokesperson Charles Jose said the meeting of Filipino diplomats posted in th Middle East and North Africa were held from January 20 to 23 in Jordan and was convened to map out contingency plans for the evacuation and repatriation of overseas Filipinos.
“The conference culminated in the formulation of a regional contingency plan,” said Jose, adding that through its diplomatic posts, the Philippine government continues to pursue other measures to ensure the protection of the rights and the promotion of the welfare of overseas Filipinos.
