Philippine welfare officials are pressing overseas Filipino workers in Lebanon to register for government repatriation, warning that the security situation could deteriorate further despite the country remaining under a voluntary evacuation status.
Owwa Deputy Administrator Jasmine Gapatan said during a television interview that the agency’s personnel are already deployed on the ground in Lebanon and are prepared to process departures. She appealed to all Filipinos in the country — including undocumented workers — to come forward.
“We hope that they register immediately, including the undocumented. Owwa personnel are there on the ground to help them, and we are ready to repatriate them,” Gapatan said.
She acknowledged, however, that uptake has been limited so far. “Only a few have opted to return home, but the conflict there could escalate further,” she added.
According to SunStar Philippines, which reported the interview, Lebanon is currently under Crisis Alert Level 3 — the voluntary repatriation phase — with Israeli air strikes and Hezbollah rocket attacks continuing to intensify in the country. Owwa data puts the number of OFWs in Lebanon at between 15,000 and 17,000, the majority of them household service workers.
The decision to shift to mandatory evacuation, Gapatan said, does not rest with Owwa. “Only the DFA can announce if mandatory evacuation is necessary,” she said, adding that the agency is standing by for any directive from the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Separate from the Lebanon situation, Gapatan reported that the broader Middle East repatriation effort has moved more than 5,400 individuals since March 5 — comprising 4,234 OFWs and 1,170 of their family members — through a joint operation between Owwa and the Department of Migrant Workers.
On the question of funding, Gapatan said the agency has a dedicated allocation for repatriation and reintegration but acknowledged the limits of the current budget if the regional conflict drags on.
“We have a mandate for OFW repatriation and reintegration. There is a dedicated fund for this. But, of course, we can always use more. The Owwa is ready but we can always use more, especially if the conflict in the Middle East continues,” she said.
