Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 26) — The Department of Foreign Affairs has brought home more than 100,000 overseas Filipinos since February this year — a first in the history of the agency, said Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Sarah Arriola.
A total of 102,519 distressed nationals abroad, who have been affected by the global coronavirus crisis, have returned to the country nearly six months after the repatriation efforts started, according to the DFA.
“It may look easy but in reality it was difficult. But through the sustained efforts of our dedicated personnel who labored 24/7 since February and the full cooperation of all our Foreign Service Posts, we pulled this feat off,” Arriola said in a statement on Sunday.
The DFA noted that some 12,000 Filipinos were repatriated over the past week, most of whom arrived from the Netherlands, New Zealand, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States of America.
It added that of the total repatriated Filipinos, 57.2 percent or 58,626 are land-based, while 42.8 percent or 43,893 are sea-based.
“Pandemic or not, the men and women of the DFA, including those of our embassies and consulates around the world, remain fully committed to bringing home our distressed nationals abroad,” Arriola said.
The undersecretary earlier bared that the DFA’s funds to bring home Filipino nationals are expected to run out by mid-August. However, she also said DFA secretary Teodoro Locsin is already realigning the department’s budget to ensure that the program will continue.
