MANILA, Philippines — More than 3,300 Filipinos have been repatriated from the Middle East and over 18,000 others have received assistance as regional tensions continue to displace workers and their families, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said Tuesday.
In a national address, Marcos said 2,551 overseas Filipino workers and 835 of their dependents returned home between March 5 and March 29. The figures underscore the scale of the crisis facing one of the world’s largest labor-exporting nations, where millions of citizens work abroad to support families back home.
Reintegration programs are in place to help returning Filipinos rebuild their lives domestically, the president said.
As of March 27, a total of 18,394 Filipinos across the Middle East had received government assistance, including food, temporary shelter, medical aid, transportation, financial support and repatriation services.
“So long as there are Filipinos in need, we will continue to extend assistance,” Marcos said.
The president also appealed for prayers for peace during the Holy Week, which began this week in the predominantly Catholic nation.
The Philippines has long relied on its overseas workforce as a key economic engine. Filipino workers abroad send billions of dollars in remittances home each year, making the government particularly sensitive to crises that threaten their safety and livelihoods in host countries.
The Middle East is home to a large concentration of Filipino workers, many employed in the construction, domestic service and healthcare sectors across Gulf states and other countries in the region.
Marcos did not specify which countries were most affected or provide details on the nature of the regional tensions prompting the repatriation efforts. The Department of Migrant Workers has previously coordinated similar operations during periods of conflict or instability in the region.
