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Ailyn Agonia
Doha
MORE than 300 Filipino workers and around 67 volunteers took part in the outreach programme spearheaded by FFL Migrant Workers at the Al Khor labour camp on Friday.
The event titled 7th Bukluran 2017 was supported by the Philippine Embassy Doha, Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO-OWWA) and other groups.
It brought to the labour camp key services of the Embassy and POLO-OWWA for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) as well as other activities including medical consultation, financial literacy training, situation preparedness information drive and registration for the database of the United Filipino Organizations in Qatar (UFOQ).
It was graced by Consul General at the Philippine Embassy Atty. Roussel Reyes and Philippine labour attach` to Qatar David Des Dicang. Philippine Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Administrator Hans Leo Cacdac who arrived in Doha from Manila early this week also addressed the workers on the occasion.
Cacdac was in Doha to discuss with the Ministry of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs (MADLSA) officials the welfare concerns of Filipino workers in Qatar.
He gave details of the assistance provided by the Philippine government to overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) such as financial assistance to start small to medium-scale businesses upon their return to their home country (micro lending programme) and assistance to disabled OFWs including death and burial assistance. He shared OWWA's new scholarship programme for those who have less than $600 salary a month.
"We are thankful to the FFL officers and team for giving our compatriots at the labour camp an opportunity to know more of the programmes and services of the Philippine Embassy and POLO-OWWA. It was timely since no less than Administrator Hans Leo Cacdac of OWWA personally met and got to hear the concerns of our compatriots. I heard they were interested in availing OWWA's new scholarship programme for those who have less than $600 salary a month," Dicang commented.
Ed Alcantara of FFL said the Bukluran event was an initiative that intends to reach out especially to migrant Filipino workers living in remote areas.
"The main objective of the group is to give the basic services to our hard working Filipinos whose contribution to the country might not be noticed but they are the ones who do not complain of the hardships faced by them in their respective works. Bukluran encourages different organisations to work together to assist our government in providing their services to the Filipinos in camps. The help is as little as assisting the OFW create his own email address or activate his Social Security System (SSS). Sometimes just giving simple blood pressure test (BP) reading for a person who did not check his BP for the past five years can be life-saving," said Alcantara.
Other organisations that supported the Bukluran Event were UFOQ, PinoyWise, RC Project143, FILTEQ and Guardians GSSI. Sponsors were CCC, LBC and Vodafone Qatar.
