Over 600,000 overseas Filipino workers are seeking assistance from the Philippine government due to the impact of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III stated that President Duterte has already ordered the release of Php5 billion for additional funds for repatriation and assistance for OFWs to meet the increasing requests for aid.
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The Philippines’ Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) states that 604,403 onsite and repatriated OFWs have applied to receive the agency’s Abot Kamay ang Pagtulong (DOLE-AKAP) program that provides the one-time financial assistance of Php10,000.
Of this number, 349,977 are onsite workers or those displaced and stranded overseas, while 254,426 are repatriated land-based and sea-based OFWs.
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A total of 237,778 OFWs have already received their cash aid, amounting to disbursement of Php 2.436 billion. This means that the budget of Php2.5 billion is almost depleted as of Saturday, August 15.
Meanwhile, Bello also reported that a total of 146,658 returning OFWs have been transported to their home provinces.
