In an unexpected but much-appreciated break in his itinerary, Vice President Jejomar Binay has met with His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces on January 12, reinforcing the strong bilateral relations between the Philippines and the UAE.
“The meeting was a surprise, we were told only this (Tuesday) morning. It wasn’t part of the schedule. But it’s a good opportunity,” said Binay, who described the meeting as “very warm and cordial”.
The Vice President said His Highness Sheikh Mohamed had expressed gratitude for the hundreds of thousands of Filipinos who have become a strong force in the UAE’s economy.
More than 900,000 Pinoys are working in the country, according to the 2013 Commission of Filipino Overseas (CFO) Compendium of Statistics.
“We also talked about potential investment opportunities in areas of power and infrastructure in the Philippines,” the Vice President said, adding that His Highness is eyeing to visit the country “one of these days”.
Shortly after the meeting with the Crown Prince, UAE Labor Minister Shaqr Ghobash invited the Vice President for a meeting.
Minister Ghobash discussed the three new labor decrees and reported on the status of ongoing negotiations on the Memorandum of Understanding on Labor and on Household Service Workers (HSWs) Unified Contract.
Ministerial Decrees 764, 765 and 766, which were unveiled last year, will pave the way for improved labor relations between the Philippines and UAE, the labor ministry said. The decrees will secure “more stable practices governed by regulations that protect workers who are legally sponsored to enter the UAE,” the ministry added in a statement.
