TACLOBAN CITY (PIA) — Two distressed overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) have returned to their homes from Lebanon, according to the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) regional office here.
During the 15th episode of Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas on Tuesday, Mary Catherine O. Pastor, OIC-Regional Director of OWWA-VIII, said that the two OFWs who availed themselves of the government’s repatriation program arrived in Tacloban in the last week of August.
“The two OFWs are from Villaba and Palo in Leyte. They were among the hundreds of Filipinos whom the government has facilitated in safely exiting Lebanon due to the Israel-Hezbollah conflict,” Pastor said.
Pastor added that, based on their latest count, there are about 30 OFWs from Eastern Visayas currently working in Lebanon.
She noted that most of them are undocumented.
Pastor also mentioned that while some OFWs are eager to return home, others are unwilling to leave Lebanon.
Pastor, who was assigned to Lebanon two years ago and maintains close ties with some OFWs from Eastern Visayas, said, “Some of them opted to stay, especially those living in the northern part of the country.”
Meanwhile, Pastor said that the repatriated OFWs received immediate financial assistance: P75,000 from the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Aksyon Fund, P75,000 from OWWA, and P20,000 from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
Pastor also stated that their office will assist these displaced OFWs in establishing their own livelihoods if they wish to start a business or find other employment opportunities. (RLA, PIA-8)
