CDA: 650K Pinoys find home in UAE
THERE are around 650,000 Filipinos who currently reside in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). And the Arab nation loves them all.
Those facts were disclosed by the UAE Embassy’s Charge d’affaires (CDA) Sheikh Saoud Al-mualla. He emphasized the number “is…based on the last figures released by [our] authorities.”
In May 2020 the overseas Filipino workers (OFWS) community in the Arab state reciprocated their love, acceptance, and appreciation for the emirates and its people, as they launched a sticker campaign containing the declaration: “Filipinos trust the UAE.” It was their way of giving back to the Emirati government and its people for their sincere care, compassion and tolerance. As the pandemic hit the world hard, authorities there provided care for its citizens, as well as foreign residents and expatriates.
In an e-mail from the UAE Embassy in the Philippines, Sheikh Al-mualla opened up on the reason Filipinos are highly accommodated in his country. He said the “common perspective in the UAE about Filipinos is that they are acceptable to UAE citizens, as well as to other nationalities living in the Emirates.”
As he described it: “Filipinos are well-educated, disciplined, with good character and behavior, highly organized, and loyal to their employers. I think [the nationality who has these attributes] would be most welcomed in our country.”
He added the UAE is a “country for all,” without any discrimination based on race, color and religion, among others. Likewise, this atmosphere of accepting each other is a result of the wise Emirati leadership’s initiative of tolerance.
The UAE is home to more than 200 nationalities—including more than half a million Filipinos, who work in every sector of the said country.
Obviously, the UAE’S strong policy of openness and acceptance of people of other religious beliefs and culture, as well as its labor laws, serve as a magnet to expatriate workers. It’s a policy that stems from a long tradition started by its founder, the late President Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al-nahyan.
“The UAE is a country that has been designed by its Wise Leader to accommodate all nationalities, including Filipinos,” stated the CDA. “[Of] course, the principle of respecting the diversity in the UAE creates a wonderful environment which attracts all people to come together and share their potential and talents. In particular, Filipino workers have been participating in the development of the UAE, not only in recent years but since the 1970s.”
He emphasized, “The contribution of Filipino workers is great in terms of their different professional fields and expertise from the highly professional engineering field,
medical field, hospitality service, and others.”
For one, the Uae—host of millions of workers from across the globe—is deeply committed in safeguarding the rights of all workers. It signed international conventions on the rights of workers as a member of the International Labour Organization.
To educate laborers on their rights, the UAE’S Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation, or MOHRE, has launched several awareness drives. It has established offices in courts to provide legal support to workers in labor disputes, and units have been set up across the country providing protection for workers.
There’s also the Abu Dhabi Dialogue created in 2008—a forum for discussion and cooperation among Asian countries of labor origin and destination.
As the pandemic rages on, the
UAE is ensuring every worker is supported by facilitating their abilities to secure temporary employment, access new job opportunities, as well as securing housing, food and medical assistance.
With a vaccine now being administered in the UAE, the government is providing the injection to all those who live in the country, citizens and non-citizens, including expatriate workers.
Sheikh Zayed’s legacy has endured, being adhered to and implemented by his son and successor: President Khalifa bin Zayed bin Sultan Al-nahyan, as well as the rest of the UAE officials. The president of UAE is the emir of Abu Dhabi.
Seven emirates comprise the UAE, with Abu Dhabi as the biggest; the rest are Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah. Sheikh Zayed and other founding members of the UAE established the state on December 2, 1971.
Sheikh Al-mualla’s message to our compatriots with relatives in his country:
“To the families of Filipinos who have been working or residing for good in the UAE, I would like to assure that, under the wise leadership of [our government], officials in their posts are exerting their efforts to reach the goals of peace of mind and heart for all its residents by providing [vital] measures in security and stability for their safety, even during the unprecedented situation [brought about by the pandemic].”