233 OFWs Return Home from Indonesia, Singapore, Kenya

(Photos by DFA-OUMWA)

PASAY CITY 20 April 2020 – On a tranquil Sunday evening, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) warmly welcomed 233 Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) from Indonesia, Kenya and Singapore. They arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) on two separate flights, Korean Air KE0623 and Philippine Airlines PR8510.

The said arrivals bring the total number of repatriated overseas Filipinos to 16,915.

The repatriates are land-based workers whose jobs were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Their respective employers paid for their plane fare to Manila.

Upon arrival, the Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ) of the Department of Health (DOH) conducted a mandatory health inspection of the repatriated OFWs. They were later transported to designated facilities where they will undergo mandatory quarantine for 14 days.

Sunday night’s repatriation was facilitated by the Philippine Embassies in Jakarta, Singapore, and Nairobi and the Philippine Consulate in Manado, Indonesia, in coordination with DFA OUMWA and the employers of the OFWs. An embodiment of the whole-of-government approach, the DFA continues to work closely with its partner agencies — the DOH, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and the Philippine Coast Guard — to ensure the safe and successful repatriation of Filipinos all over the world.

The DFA and its Foreign Service Posts remain steadfast to its mission to bring Filipinos home amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. On Monday, the DFA is set to welcome home more than 1,200 overseas Filipinos. END