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591K Filipino repatriates home since March 2020

By Ferdinand Patinio

June 26, 2021, 7:42 pm

<p><strong>NEXT STEP.</strong> Repatriates from the Gulf states listen to arrival protocols at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Pasay City on Friday (June 25, 2021). Home through government efforts, all 301 repatriates were given PHP10,000 each. <em>(Photo courtesy of PCOO)</em></p>

NEXT STEP. Repatriates from the Gulf states listen to arrival protocols at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Pasay City on Friday (June 25, 2021). Home through government efforts, all 301 repatriates were given PHP10,000 each. (Photo courtesy of PCOO)

MANILA – Close to 600,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) repatriated through government efforts have been sent home.

Based on the data of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), 591,063 Filipino workers affected by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) have been transported mostly to provinces.

The repatriation covered the period March 2020 to June 22, 2021.

This year, 109,354 returnees are already in the provinces, in addition to the 391,709 last year.

Upon their arrival, OFWs proceeded to quarantine facilities where they stayed until the results of their swab tests were released.

Those who yielded negative results were taken to their final destinations. Those bound for other areas in Luzon outside Metro Manila traveled via buses from the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange.

The OWWA requested the Department of Budget and Management for an additional PHP5.2 billion to fund the repatriation program this year.

The program is in coordination with the Department of Labor and Employment, Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, Department of Transportation, Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of Interior and Local Government, Department of National Defense, and Department of Health. (PNA)

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