26 April 2014 - Upon the directive of Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert F. del Rosario, Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Jesus I. Yabes convened on April 24 a Special Meeting of the Ambassadors, Consuls General and other Heads of Philippine Foreign Service Posts in the Middle East, Africa and other nearby countries to discuss the Philippine Government's response to the threats posed by the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome - Coronavirus (MERS-CoV), ebola virus, and other similar viruses.
The Special Meeting was held on the sidelines of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Regional Workshop on Trafficking in Persons for Posts in the Middle East and Africa, which is being conducted in partnership with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Ankara, Turkey.
The Meeting agenda included a briefing on MERS-CoV and ebola virus, a survey of the public health landscape in the host countries and possible effects of the viruses on overseas Filipinos, and a review of individual and regional contingency plans in the event of a pandemic situation.
"The DFA's goal is two-fold -- to safeguard the health and safety of our countrymen who are in the affected countries and to ensure that these communicable and fatal viruses do not spread," Undersecretary Yabes said.
Some of the critical points raised are securing access to health treatment for overseas Filipino nationals; enforcement of adequate protective measures for members of the Philippine Foreign Service and other government personnel at Posts; strategies to contain the spread of such illnesses; and efficient coordination with the World Health Organization (WHO) and other relevant agencies of the Philippine and host governments.
Recent reports of some Filipino medical workers testing positive for MERS-CoV in the United Arab Emirates have highlighted the health risks to thousands of Filipinos in the Middle East. However, it bears emphasizing that the WHO has not declared any outbreak or epidemic of MERS-CoV in the region.
The DFA will not prevent overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from returning to the Philippines. Instead, the DFA reiterates its advice to all those traveling to the Philippines, who are originating from or transiting in high-risk areas and who were identified to have been in close contact with somebody suspected to be infected with MERS-CoV, to undergo testing and wait for negative test results before pushing through with their travel plans. They should also practice self-quarantine if warranted, be aware of the symptoms, maintain proper hygiene and adopt other preventive measures.
Meanwhile, there have been no reports of any Filipino affected by the ebola outbreak in certain West African countries. There are also no travel restrictions for any country where MERS-CoV and ebola cases have been reported. END