Days of continuous missile strikes in the Middle East that started on February 28 have left millions of Filipinos in the area and their families back home in fear and uncertainty.

There are more than two million Filipinos in the conflict-ridden region, government data show. Many of them are overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) sending millions of dollars in remittances back home.

With no end in sight to the “open-ended war” just yet, alarm over the damage the conflict will inflict only continues to grow.

What’s at stake for Filipinos as conflict in the Middle East rages on? Here’s the data.

2,443,700 Filipinos

An estimated 2.4 million Filipinos are in the Middle East, according to data from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). Many of these migrants are concentrated in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Maps from the US-based policy research organization Institute for the Study of War show that the strikes have been concentrated in Iran and coastal areas in the Gulf region. This region includes the countries of Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.

Earlier data from the DFA’s training and research institution, the Foreign Service Institute, showed that there were 2.1 million Filipino migrants in the Middle East in 2024. While a majority of these migrants were documented, around 3% or 60,152 Filipinos were not. 

Government officials like Raffy Tulfo, the Senate’s chair for its committee on migrant workers, have expressed concern over the status of these undocumented migrants as tensions in the region continue to rise.

85,934 Filipinos in areas where crisis alerts have been issued

Of the millions of Filipinos in the region, around 86,000 are in areas where varying crisis alert levels have been raised by the DFA as of March 2. Only areas under Alert Level 4 require repatriation for Filipinos. Those in areas under Alert Level 3 are only urged to evacuate, while lower alert levels advise Filipinos to take the necessary precautions.

1,113,049 land-based OFWs

The working Filipino population in the region is also one million strong. Similar to the DFA’s data, OFWs are concentrated in urban areas like Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

The Department of Migrant Workers has not yet published a complete breakdown of where in the Philippines these OFWs come from, but some of the regional offices of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) have released their own

• 57,486 OFWs from Western Visayas, according to OWWA Region 6
• 33,903 OFWs from Central Visayas, according to Sunstar Cebu’s report citing data from OWWA Region 7

The Philippine Statistics Authority’s 2024 survey on overseas Filipinos also shows that 6 in 10 OFWs in Western Asia, a geographical region that mostly overlaps with areas in the Middle East, are women.

The millions of OFWs in the Middle East also make up the majority of the Philippines’ total migrant workforce at about 52%.

4 out of 10 top OFW destinations

Of the 10 most popular destinations for OFWs in 2025, four Middle Eastern countries ranked in the top spots. Saudi Arabia and the UAE ranked 1st and 2nd, respectively, while Qatar and Kuwait also landed in the top 5th and 6th spots.

$6,481,295,000 in remittances for 2025

The money that OFWs send back home to the Philippines also “sustain[s] millions of Filipino households,” according to the government. In 2025 alone, OFWs in the Middle East sent back $6,481,295,000 or roughly P380 billion in cash remittances, according to data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

This made up around 18.19% of cash remittances from all over the world that year. Unsurprisingly, the bulk of this money came from Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

25,000 students in the Gulf region

Filipino students also make up a good portion of the Filipino population in the Middle East. The Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) estimates that the Gulf region currently hosts approximately 25,000 Filipino students at various levels and 1,000 teachers, administrators, and school personnel.

The CFO’s data also show that a majority of Philippine schools overseas (PSOs), which are recognized educational institutions that operate abroad but implement the Philippines’ education curriculum, are located in the Gulf region, where missile strikes have been concentrated. The department has assured Filipinos that these schools remain “safe and operational” as of March 2.

Efforts are underway to ensure the safety of all Filipinos currently in the Middle East. While repatriation remains difficult, the government has advised Filipinos to “shelter in place and follow the host government’s advice.”

The OWWA has also urged Filipinos to reach out to Philippine diplomatic posts and offices when in need of assistance. (READ MORE: LIST: Contact numbers, hotlines for Filipinos in the Middle East) – Rappler.com

Conversion rate as of March 4, 2026, is $1 = P58.3090.