ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider First Lady courts UAE business sector to expand long-term opportunities for OFWs

First Lady courts UAE business sector to expand long-term opportunities for OFWs

Published Jan 12, 2026 03:51 pm
First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos engages with Filipinos in Dubai during her working visit to the United Arab Emirates from Jan. 10-13, 2026. (Araneta-Marcos/Facebook)
First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos engages with Filipinos in Dubai during her working visit to the United Arab Emirates from Jan. 10-13, 2026. (Araneta-Marcos/Facebook)
First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos met with members of the UAE business council and Filipino community leaders in Dubai to strengthen partnerships aimed at expanding long-term opportunities for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).
In a press briefing, Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Undersecretary Claire Castro said the Jan. 11 engagement focused on deepening cooperation between Filipinos and private sector partners to better safeguard OFW welfare and create more sustainable employment prospects.
One of the First Lady’s goals, Castro said, is to “strengthen relations between Filipinos and private sector partners to safeguard the welfare of OFWs in the UAE and to further expand long-term opportunities for them.”

Serbisyo Caravan

Ahead of the business meetings, the First Lady led the opening of the third leg of the OFW Serbisyo Caravan at the Conrad Hotel in Dubai on Jan. 10.
In an Instagram post, Araneta-Marcos said Dubai is home to nearly a million OFWs, each deserving of government care and support to make life easier for them.
She said the caravan brought essential services closer to Filipinos abroad, ranging from passport and consular assistance to healthcare, financial, housing, and welfare support.
“Most moving of all was spending time with OFWs who are bravely fighting cancer, far from the comfort of home and loved ones,” the First Lady said, adding that their strength underscored the importance of the government’s work for migrant workers.

Medical, digital services rolled out

Castro said more than 100 OFWs received medical and welfare assistance during the caravan, including those undergoing treatment for serious illnesses.
Agencies, including the Department of Migrant Workers, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration, the Social Security System, and the Presidential Action Center, pooled resources to deliver medical aid and disability benefits.
She added that the Department of Information and Communications Technology rolled out e-government services such as eGov PH app registration, online employment contract verification, and access to the Kumusta Kabayan app.
Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said the initiative was meant to deliver not just documents but concrete care and support to migrant workers.

Community engagement through culture

The First Lady also joined Filipino workers at the “Libreng Konsyerto para sa mga Filipino sa UAE,” describing the event, organized by the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), as a night that belonged to OFWs.

In another Instagram post, Araneta-Marcos said she enjoyed seeing Filipinos sing, dance, and celebrate together, calling the concert “loud, proud and full of joy.”
Castro said the First Lady’s activities in the UAE were carried out in line with the directive of President Marcos to bring faster, more efficient, and more humane government services closer to Filipinos working overseas.
She added that the combination of business engagement, government services, and cultural activities underscored the administration’s commitment to ensuring that under Bagong Pilipinas, OFWs are seen, valued, and supported both professionally and personally.
Meanwhile, President Marcos himself is bound to the UAE to attend a sustainability forum and witness the signing of two agreements on free trade and defense cooperation between the Philippines and Duba. Marcos’ official visit to the UAE is from Jan. 12 to 14.

Related Tags

Claire Castro PH-UAE First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos Liza Araneta-Marcos
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.