MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) is ramping up efforts to support the country’s overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) through its “Bagong Bayani ng Mundo: OFW Serbisyo Caravan” and plans to open new Migrant Workers Offices (MWOs) abroad, officials said Thursday.
The caravan, which brings essential government services directly to OFWs, has served over 10,000 workers across five international locations since its launch in Hong Kong on June 7, DMW Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac announced during a media briefing. The initiative aligns with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s directive to make government services more accessible to Filipinos working abroad.
Following Hong Kong, caravans were held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Osaka, Japan; Doha, Qatar; and Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The Dubai event on Aug. 3 drew an estimated 12,000 OFWs, with 5,928 individuals completing 11,569 transactions in a single day. However, the unexpectedly large turnout left many unserved.
“Many were not accommodated because of the high number of attendees,” Cacdac said. “We sincerely apologize to those we were unable to serve. We are learning from this and will add more service days and require online pre-registration to manage crowd size.”
Popular services included Overseas Workers Welfare Administration membership renewals and e-cards, PhilHealth and Pag-IBIG assistance, and Philippine Statistics Authority services such as birth certificates, certificates of no marriage, and national ID applications. The Social Security System and the Department of Information and Communications Technology also provided support.
Building on the program’s success, the DMW will launch caravans in Jeddah on Aug. 8 and Al Khobar on Aug. 15, with Shanghai, China, and Rome, Italy, scheduled for October. To enhance accessibility, the DMW is partnering with VFS Global and DataFlow to digitize services, though sensitive matters like legal counseling will remain in-person to ensure privacy.
Cacdac emphasized the need for digital literacy training, noting that while Filipinos are active online, many require guidance to navigate platforms like eGovPH. “We’ll continue offering both physical and digital channels, and we’ll teach our OFWs how to use the digital platforms,” he said.
In a historic move, Cacdac will lead a DMW delegation to Liberia and Nigeria from Aug. 9 to 16, marking the agency’s first visit to West Africa. The mission aims to engage Filipino communities and government counterparts, with a specific goal of establishing a new MWO in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital. Nigeria hosts over 6,000 Filipino workers in sectors like oil and gas, maritime shipping, and education, while around 150 Filipinos in Liberia are underserved.
“Nigeria is a strategic location,” Cacdac said. “We’ve also seen undocumented cases, so placing an MWO there is a humanitarian and operational necessity.” Currently, the only MWO in Africa is in Rabat, Morocco, leaving OFWs in other regions reliant on the Department of Foreign Affairs for consular support.
The DMW operates 42 MWOs globally and plans to open four additional offices this year in Cambodia, Vietnam, Turkey, and South Africa, further strengthening its support network for the estimated 1.8 million Filipinos working abroad.
The expansion reflects the Philippines’ commitment to its “modern-day heroes,” who contribute significantly to the economy through remittances while facing challenges like isolation and legal issues in host countries.
