PH, Qatar discuss areas of bilateral cooperation on labor, migration
DFA Undersecretary Sarah Lou Arriola meets with Major General Saad bin Jassim Al Khulaifi, Director General of General Security Department of the Ministry of Interior. (Doha PE photo)
DOHA, 22 December 2021 – A delegation from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) headed by Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs Sarah Lou Y. Arriola held a series of bilateral meetings with counterparts in Qatar on 20 December 2021.
Undersecretary Arriola met with officials from the Ministry of Interior (MOI), Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), and the Ministry of Administrative Development, Labor and Social Affairs (MADLSA). During these meetings, she expressed the Philippines' deepest appreciation on significant reforms being undertaken by Qatar on the labor front in recent years, especially the abolition of the Kafala system, which have had a positive impact on Filipino expatriates.
Taking cognizance of the positive impact of the reforms on labor mobility, Undersecretary Arriola proposed the holding of a joint activity, or a side event between the Philippines and Qatar at the sidelines of the International Migration Review Forum (IMRF) to be held in New York on 10 to 13 May 2022 to showcase the strong partnership between the two countries in the fields of labor and migration, to which her counterparts signified interest in participating.
Other subjects of mutual concern that were discussed during the meetings include the cooperation with the MOI on disaster management, cooperation with MOFA on the convening of the joint mechanism for political consultation, and the cooperation with MADLSA on the signing of a bilateral agreement on anti-trafficking in person, and fair and ethical recruitment.
Joining Undersecretary Arriola in the meetings were DFA Assistant Secretary for Middle East and African Affairs Alfonso Ferdinand A. Ver, Philippine Ambassador to Qatar Alan L. Timbayan, and other officials from the DFA and the Philippine Embassy in Doha, Qatar. END
DFA Undersecretary Sarah Lou Arriola meets with Dr. Ahmad Hassen Al-Hammadi, Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. (DFA-OUMWA photo)
DFA Undersecretary Sarah Lou Arriola meets Mr. Mohammed Hassan Al-Obaidly, Assistant Undersecretary for Labor Affairs of the Ministry of Administrative Development, Labor and Social Affairs. (DFA-OUMWA photo)