The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Monday reported a huge surge in both the number of new confirmed COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) cases and new recoveries among Filipinos abroad.

In the category of the confirmed cases, the DFA recorded 291 new cases and 153 in the new recoveries among overseas Filipinos infected with the coronavirus disease.
Both new reported cases and recoveries were from Asia and the Pacific, Europe, and the Middle East.
Meanwhile, five new fatalities were recorded in Asia and the Pacific and in the Middle East.
As of October 5, 2020, the total number of COVID-19 cases among Filipinos abroad is 10,840. Of which, 6,903 have recovered, 3,139 are undergoing treatment while 798 died of the disease.
DFA Assistant Secretary Eduardo Meñez said this is not the first time that a spike on COVID-19 cases have been reported due to accumulations of report collated by the foreign service posts in certain geographical regions.
“This is not the highest surge of confirmed cases, there was a large batch in June (2020) due to accumulated reports from the Middle East,” he said,
The foreign affairs department, through its foreign posts, assured that it will continue to partner with host governments to ensure the safety and well-being of Filipinos abroad amid the pandemic.