PH, Saudi Arabia discuss possibility of joint special hiring program for Filipino workers --- By RICHA NORIEGA, GMA Integrated News

The Philippines and Saudi Arabia discussed the possibility of a joint special hiring program for Filipino skilled workers, according to the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) on Friday. DMW Secretary Susan Ople said the possibility of having a joint special hiring program was raised due to Saudi Arabia’s push to develop its tourism sector. “We discussed the possibility of the Philippines and Saudi Arabia having a joint special hiring program for skilled Filipino workers because they are expecting a huge demand, especially for their tourism sector. They are embarking on expansion plans, and they want to attract more tourists to Saudi Arabia,” Ople said at a press conference. “We said that perhaps if they give us the numbers and the profile of workers needed, then we will continue to discuss if there is a need for the DMW to work closely with TESDA and other institutions and to put together a special hiring program just to meet the demands and requests of Saudi employers for skilled workers as well as the Saudi government,” she added. Ople also said that Saudi Arabia plans to explore the possibility of bringing investments to the Philippines. “I also met with the Minister of Investment, and he echoed the same thing. Sabi nga niya (He said), he would also like to explore the possibility of bringing Saudi investments to the Philippines, facilitating Saudi investments in the Philippines, and looking at tourism opportunities parang exchanges for both countries,” she said. Unpaid claims Ople said Saudi Arabia created a committee that would meet every week to settle the unpaid claims of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). She also said that the funds are now with the kingdom’s Ministry of Finance. “We no longer inquire about the amount, but what is clear is that it is there, and it is sufficient to pay not just the claims of unpaid workers natin but all the other claims, including those of their people,” she said. She said DMW Undersecretary Bernard Olalia was designated to represent the Philippine government on the discussion of the unpaid claims issue. Ople said the Saudi government also requested more time to settle the claims, adding that they would give more details in the coming months. “They requested a bit more time; they said the committee that meets every week is still discussing the implementation process in relation to the processing of claims and other legalities. They said by next month, which is June, they may be able to give us more details, or kung hindi man June, at least in the coming months,” she said. Ople then told affected OFWs that they are now processing the unpaid claims and that the commitment shown by the Saudi government was “significant progress.” The DMW earlier said it had already received more than 7,500 emails from former OFWs in Saudi Arabia with unpaid wages from their companies that went bankrupt in 2015 and 2016. Ople said that around 10,000 OFWs were affected by this issue. — VBL, GMA Integrated News

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

POPCOM, gagamit ng ‘digital platforms’ para pagtibayin ang mga ugnayang pampamilya

Mas pinalalawig ng Komisyon sa Populasyon at Pagpapaunlad (POPCOM) ang adhikain nitong pagpapalaganap at pagpapabuti ng pakikipag-ugnayan ng mga nakakatandang Pilipino sa kanilang mga anak na nagdadalaga at nagbibinata. Nitong Setyembre 21, ang POPCOM ay nagsagawa ng isang “parent-teen talk webinar” gamit ang Zoom, kung saan ang isang “interactive program” ang nagbigay ng naaayon na kaalaman at kasanayan sa mga magulang, habang tumulong ito sa mga anak na teenager na maabot ang kanilang buong potensyal. Hinikayat din nito ang mga nanay at tatay na sumali sa malayang usapan, lalo na sa mga usapin ukol sa sex at sekswalidad, na nakikitang makakatulong upang bumaba ang mga bilang ng mga pagbubuntis sa hanay ng mga kabataan. Maaaring mapanood ang webinar sa https://youtu.be/lZ9jrJCjYas. Ayon kay Ikalawang Kalihim (Undersecretary) Juan Antonio A. Perez III, MD, MPH, “ang webinar ay naging isang tagapag-simula at ‘padaluyan’ ng pag-uu
Read more

UP Diliman Professors Share Scientists’ Procurement Struggles at Senate Hearing

By Harvey Sapigao Senate hearing of the revised procurement law (Photo credit: Senate of the Philippines) College of Science (CS) Dean Giovanni Tapang held up a little white device as he finished his presentation. “This is a ₱150,000 component,” he described. “Isa lang gumagawa nito sa buong mundo, pero ang hirap pilitin sila na magregister sa PhilGEPS,” he continued, referring to the requirement that foreign companies must first register to the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) before they can sell products to local scientists. Marine Science Institute (MSI) Deputy Director Dr. Irene Rodriguez explained that the small device is a resin that filters metals in water. “May budget tayo,” she said, “pero ang problema ko ay ‘yung resin na ito.” This and other bottlenecks brought about by the procurement law, or the Government Procurement Reform Act (RA 9184), slow down research and development in the country. UPD leaders were invited to the Senate he
Read more

Gaza war rages into fourth month as Blinken tours Middle East Adel Zaanoun with Ilan Ben Zion in Jerusalem, --- Agence France-Presse

The Israel-Hamas war raging in Gaza entered its fourth month on Sunday as the army again pounded the besieged Palestinian territory and US top diplomat Antony Blinken was back in the region seeking to avoid a wider escalation. Israeli airstrikes overnight and early Sunday killed at least 64 people in the Hamas-run Palestinian territory, said its health ministry. It said two journalists were killed when their car was struck. The ministry, medics, and witnesses identified them as Mustafa Thuria, a video stringer for Agence France-Presse, and Hamza Wael Dahdouh, the son of Al Jazeera's bureau chief in Gaza who earlier lost his wife and two other children in an Israeli strike. Israeli bombardment also claimed other civilian lives in the southern city of Khan Yunis and in the Rafah area near the Egyptian border, where many of the territory's displaced people have sought refuge, AFP correspondents reported. Relatives were mourning the dead at Khan Yunis' European Hospital, am
Read more