Manama: The Philippine Overseas Labour Office-Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (POLO-OWWA) in Qatar has launched a 24-hour hotline to deal with complaints and concerns of the Filipino community.
The establishment of the round-the-clock call centre is part of an effort by POLO-OWWA officials to improve the standard of services offered to the growing number of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in Qatar.
Around 250,000 Filipinos live in Qatar, the third largest expatriate community in the Arabian Gulf.
POLO-OWWA has distributed leaflets and e-mails at various community for a indicating the telephone numbers which will help Filipinos access the service, Qatari daily The Peninsula reported.
The 24-hour services should be a welcome relief for OFWs, since POLO-OWWA has often been criticised, with complaints ranging from inaccessibility to alleged inefficiency when it comes to helping people get services at government offices.
Welfare officer Dayang Dayang Sitti Jaafar said several staff have been assigned to answer calls at all hours of the day.
Grievances and other concerns will be promptly forwarded to the concerned section of the POLO-OWWA.
The new services, the first to be introduced by a government agency, are part of a series of reforms introduced by labour attache Ricardo Sodusta.
