10 June 2014 – Philippine Embassy in Manama, Bahrain including attached agencies, organized and conducted an Orientation Program on Migration (OPM), for frontline personnel of foreign placement agencies, mostly Filipinos, on June 7 at the Embassy. The event was attended by about 50 foreign placement agencies personnel as well as personnel of the Embassy and attached services.

The opening session discussed the Philippine experience on migration, with focus on Filipino migration to Bahrain.  Taken up were general concepts on migration, the players in the migration process, the government agencies involved in migration management, data on the Filipinos in Bahrain,  the relevant national laws of the Philippines and Bahrain, and international conventions on the protection of migrant workers and their families. 

Presentations were also made on the Embassy’s consular and Assistance-to-Nationals (ATN) services, Overseas Absentee Voting (OAV) registration, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) programs and services, Pag-IBIG, Social Security System (SSS) and Landbank programs and services.

The closing session included a discussion by  the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO)-Bahrain of the verification and accreditation procedures involved in the hiring and placement of Filipino workers, the registration and issuance of Overseas Employment Certificate (OEC) to returning workers, welfare services to overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), including welfare assistance, case handling and management, and repatriation of workers.

The activities of the Migrant Workers and Other Filipinos Resource Center (MWOFWRC) and the guidelines on the admission and stay of wards at the MWOFRC were also taken up. To expound on the role of Filipino community organizations in the promotion of welfare of OFWs in the Kingdom, a representative from the umbrella organization Filipino Club was requested to deliver a presentation on the topic. Likewise, a representative from the media showed a presentation on the role of media in the rights protection and welfare promotion of OFWs in the kingdom.

The orientation sought to equip the participants with the knowledge and information necessary to enable them to avail of the Embassy’s programs and services, and to participate actively in Embassy projects and activities. The sessions explored how the participants could help in the delivery of the Embassy’s services to OFWs hired through their placement agencies, especially, those engaged in household services.  END