The Philippines has enough emergency funding through the end of the year to assist overseas Filipino workers affected by attacks in Saudi Arabia and protests in France and Italy, Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said Wednesday.
Cacdac said a 3 billion-peso supplemental budget announced by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in July is helping cover airfare, accommodation and financial assistance for Filipinos affected by travel disruptions in Saudi Arabia.
“There are sufficient funds to carry us over until the end of the year,” he said at a media forum.
The Department of Migrant Workers and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration have provided plane tickets to workers whose Riyadh-Manila trips were disrupted and accommodation for passengers whose flights were diverted to Jeddah, Cacdac said.
The agencies also assisted workers who traveled from Philippine provinces to Manila only to have their flights to Riyadh canceled following what Cacdac described as recent Houthi attacks on King Khalid International Airport.
Welfare administration chief Patricia Yvonne Caunan arranged accommodation for travelers stranded in Manila, he said.
Meanwhile, Cacdac said no Filipinos had been reported harmed in recent protests and clashes in France and Italy. The demonstrations were triggered by high living costs, low wages and rising fuel prices, according to the department.
Philippine embassies in Paris and Rome and the consulate in Milan are maintaining contact with Filipino communities, issuing advisories and keeping assistance hotlines open, he said.
Cacdac said the unrest appeared to have subsided and local law enforcement had brought the situation under control, but Philippine officials remained prepared to help.
Marcos has ordered officials to monitor developments and prepare for possible evacuations or repatriations if needed, Cacdac said.
