President Duterte has reaffirmed the Philippines’ commitment to further strengthen bilateral ties with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member-countries, Malacañang said in a statement Thursday, Dec. 16.
This took place during the joint courtesy call to the President on Wednesday, Dec. 15, of the ambassadors of the Sultanate of Oman, State of Qatar, State of Kuwait, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) which comprise the GCC.
President Duterte thanked the GCC governments for their assistance to the Philippines’ pandemic response efforts and in the repatriation of Filipino nationals affected by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) crisis.
The Filipino leader stated that the Philippines looks forward to working closely with GCC partners as they implement their respective labor reform initiatives.
"I hope that these reforms succeed and evolve to encompass the more vulnerable sectors in the GCC labor market, particularly household service workers,” Duterte said.
The Middle East is a major market for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). According to the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), the top two destinations for OFWs is KSA and UAE, in that order.
Duterte also noted the successful implementation of the GCC countries’ strategic framework aimed at economic diversification, opening opportunities for broader cooperation in various spheres, particularly climate change.
“The Philippines is keenly interested in working with our GCC partners to realize our shared aspiration for a better future for all our peoples,” the President added.
For their part, the GCC ambassadors expressed appreciation for the opportunity to meet and discuss with the President bilateral issues of mutual interest, including pandemic cooperation, labor reform, migration and development, regional peace and security, climate change, and energy.
The GCC courtesy call was not Duterte's sole interaction with foreign envoys Wednesday as he also received new ambassadors from four other countries in Malacañang.