THE first batch of 34 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) returning from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia will arrive on Monday, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) said.
Earlier, flights were disrupted after Houthi rebels attacked King Khalid International Airport.
OWWA on Sunday said the first batch of OFWs left Riyadh on Oct.17 for Al Qassim Airport, where they were set to board Qatar Airways flight QR 1197 bound for Doha. OWWA Welfare Officer Sergio Borgueta and others from OWWA Riyadh accompanied them “to assist in their journey from Riyadh to Al Qassim,” OWWA said in Filipino.
From Doha, the OFWs’ journey “will continue aboard Qatar Airways flight QR 934, which is expected to arrive at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 on October 19 at 8:15 in the morning,” OWWA said.
Their repatriation was arranged by OWWA Riyadh, in collaboration with the Migrant Workers Office (MWO) Riyadh, and with the guidance and coordination of the Embassy of the Philippines in Riyadh under the leadership of Ambassador Raymond Balatbat.
OWWA said its Repatriation and Assistance Division will meet the OFWs upon their arrival in Manila “to provide airport assistance, transportation, temporary accommodations if necessary, and domestic airline tickets for those who will return home to their respective provinces.” A total of 349 OFWs were covered by “current repatriation arrangements,” OWWA said, adding that it arranged the repatriation of the 34 OFWs with the DMW. “The repatriation is pursuant to the directive of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to prioritize the safety and welfare of OFWs under the Saving Lives pillar of the Unified Package for Livelihoods, Industry, Food, and Transport Assistance Program,” OWWA said.
An initial 200 OFWs were set to arrive in the Philippines from Riyadh from Oct. 19 to 21 “through the coordination of the DMW, OWWA, MWOs, and Department of Foreign Affairs,” the DMW said in a statement on Saturday.
