It has already been well over a month since the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Philippines and Kuwait has been officially signed, but to this day, not a single household service worker (HSW) has been allowed to leave the country.
Despite the signing of the MoU last May 12, and the consequent lifting of the deployment ban on Kuwait (May 16), reports from various recruitment agencies revealed that newly-hired HSWs bound for Kuwait are yet allowed to leave the country.
Kuwait-bound HSWs Still Await Approval for Deployment in Kuwait
On this matter, the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA) released a statement to clarify the situation and explained that a resolution has yet to be passed before they let the newly-hired Filipino HSWs officially set foot in Kuwait once again.
Once this resolution has been passed, the implementing rules and guidelines will be settled within a 15-day publication period.
POEA Administrator Mr. Bernard Olalia mentioned that the Philippine government, through their agency, wanted to ensure that the MoU gets dutifully implemented before they completely restore labour processes in the Gulf State.
The good news for Filipinos waiting to be deployed for work in Kuwait is that the 15-day publication period of the MoU guidelines has ended last July 6.
This development will have ensured that the deployment of Filipino HSWs has been completely restored and is back on track.
Mr. Olalia shared that the next step would be to wait for job orders from the Philippine Overseas Labour Office (POLO), and once the orders have been verified and accredited, the POEA can start processing applications once again.
Through the enhanced labour agreement between the Philippines and Kuwait, the Philippine government and all parties involved, can hope to see an end to the cases of abuse and maltreatment of OFWs in Kuwait, and in general.
Here is a short video clip of the news item posted by TV Patrol: