The Labor Department dismisses fears over Saudi Arabia’s new policy on the entry of foreign nationals with specific COVID-19 vaccine brands.
Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello says that overseas Filipino workers are not covered by the said policy.
“Sinabihan ako ng policy ng Saudi ay kinocover lamang yung mga foreign traveller at hindi kasama ang ating mga OFW,” Bello said in a media briefing.
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The government official said that he explained to their Saudi counterparts the situation on the limited vaccine supply and the government is aiming to vaccinate as many as it can regardless of any approved COVID-19 vaccine.
“They need our OFWs. Pangalawa nabakunahan naman na nag OFW ibig sabihin no danger of contamination. Napansin nila na hindi naman tayo sobra sobrang bakuna kung anong bakuna na pwede gamitin sa OFW.,” he said.
It was reported that KSA and European member countries will not allow entry for travelers who got Covid-19 vaccine from Chinese pharmaceutical firms such as Sinovac-BioNTech.
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So far, the labor department has yet to receive any reports of discrimination among OFWs over preferred COVID-19 vaccine brands by their host countries.
To date, the Philippines has rolled out the vaccination of Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Sinovac, and Sputnik V brands. (TDT)
