The Department of Foreign Affairs repatriates 350 stranded Filipinos from the UAE. Photo from the DFA
MANILA, Philippines — Some 350 Filipinos stranded in Dubai due to the coronavirus pandemic have been flown home to the Philippines through a flight chartered by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).
This is the third fight chartered by the DFA, with a fourth flight scheduled to arrive this weekend, the department said in a statement Friday.
The latest batch of repatriates pushed the total of Filipinos flown home from the United Arab Emirates since the start of the pandemic to 3,350.
According to DFA Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs Sarah Lou Arriola, the department is “mounting more flights in the coming weeks to bring home as many distressed Filipinos from the UAE as soon as possible.”
The 350 repatriated Filipinos abided by the government’s medical protocols and quarantine procedures, the DFA said.
The repatriates, meanwhile, received reintegration assistance worth $200 (approximately P9997), it added. — McKenzie Kinsella, trainee
EDV