DMW launches reintegration network for repatriated OFWs

THE DEPARTMENT of Migrant Workers (DMW) on Monday launched its reintegration assistance program for repatriated overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) through a 22-agency network.

During the launch of the “Bayanihan para sa Balikbayang Manggagawa” National Reintegration Network (NRN), Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo J. Cacdac said they found 200,000 opportunities abroad for OFWs through their job and skillset matching initiatives.

“We saw the skillsets [of the OFWs] and matched it with job orders abroad and we came up with more or less 200,000 job orders,” Mr. Cacdac said in Filipino, noting that many returning Filipinos still plan to work abroad.

According to the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), about 8,000 local and overseas job opportunities have been offered during the NRN launch through 15 participating private companies and recruitment agencies.

The reintegration network comprises 22 government agencies including OWWA, the Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, Department of Labor and Employment, Department of Health, Department of Education, Social Security System, Philippine Health Insurance Corp., and Pag-IBIG Fund.

“For the first time, in this administration, a network like this was formed so that you no longer have to go to different offices one by one. It has been brought together for our OFWs and their families,” OWWA Administrator Patricia Yvonne M. Caunan said during the job fair.

Based on OWWA’s survey for the repatriated OFWs, 2,116 Filipinos would like to work in the Philippines, while 1,572 prefer employment abroad, and 117 seek to grow their businesses in the country.

The reintegration assistance also covers livelihood packages for returning OFWs who would like to start their own business.

As of April, over 4,000 OFWs have been repatriated since the war erupted on Feb. 28 when the US-Israel launched attacks on Iran.

About 2.4 million Filipinos live in the affected region, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Early Monday, seven OFWs from Lebanon, and nine from the United Arab Emirates returned to the country and received post-repatriation aid from the DMW and OWWA through food, domestic flight tickets, land transportation, and accommodation assistance. — Kaela Patricia B. Gabriel