The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) on Monday, Sept. 18, announced a potential collaboration with The Kingdom of Bahrain's Royal Charity Organization (RCO).
The possible initiative occurred when RCO Secretary-General Mustafa Al-Sayed visited the PRC to explore more opportunities for collaboration.
PRC Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Richard "Dick" Gordon emphasized the friendship between the Philippines and Bahrain.
"As you know, together with the Royal Charity Organization, we constructed two training centers in Subic and Tacloban," Gordon said.
He added that the establishment of training centers serves as evidence of Bahrain's commitment to assisting Filipinos, particularly the survivors of Typhoon Yolanda.
“We are truly grateful for the support and the friendship we built," he said.
"I'm excited to work with RCO again after our collaboration for recovery and resilience," Gordon added.
In 2014, the people of Bahrain, through the RCO, donated USD400,000 for the infrastructure of two PRC vocational training centers in Leyte and Subic "to help the Filipinos strengthen their economic capability and resilience against hazards.”
PRC added that the project aims "to alleviate poverty and lower unemployment by providing accessible, high-quality vocational training and job-creation projects for unemployed and underprivileged Filipinos, especially those from historically disadvantaged communities."
The RCO is globally renowned for its contributions to development and humanitarian assistance, extending its support to communities in developing countries as well.
Meanwhile, PRC Secretary-General Gwen Pang noted that the said training centers were instrumental in the recovery of Filipinos affected by typhoons.
"We were able to provide various programs and courses that enhanced their knowledge and skills needed to land a job or start a livelihood," Pang said. "We are not only fighting poverty here, but also promoting literacy," she added.
