brought about by natural disasters, civil unrest, armed conflict and similar crises in
foreign countries.
2.
Strengthened inter-agency partnership and coordination of agencies in addressing
specific migration issues such as illegal recruitment and human trafficking for
labour46.
3.
Implemented more accessible, efficient and convenient in-country services for
OFWs and their families, such as passport and exit clearance processing and
enrolment to social protection programmes through the (a) new consular and
OEC transaction counters in shopping malls; (b) mobile passporting and consular
outreach services; (c) one-stop-shop centres for services of the Philippine Overseas
Employment Administration (POEA) and Overseas Workers Welfare
Administration (OWWA); (d) online system for appointments, submission of
applications, registration, and inquiries; (e) simplified requirements for often used
service, such as the multi-travel exit clearance for frequently vacationing OFWs;
and (f) ISO certification for 37 key work processes in POEA to sustain improvement
in service quality for OFWs.
4.
Strengthened on-site services for OFWs under the one-country-team approach by
(a) streamlining procedures for handling anti-illegal recruitment and anti-human
trafficking in persons; (b) rationalizing procedures for accessing legal assistance
funds; and (c) providing revised guidelines on operations of the Department of
Labor and Employment-Philippine Overseas Labor Office (DOLE-POLO) such as
the management of the Filipino Migrant Workers Resource Centers, handling of
OFW cases involving contract violation and illegal recruitment, repatriation
procedures, facilitating conduct of skills training and capacity building for workers
on-site, and preparing them for return and reintegration.
5.
Adopted the Citizen’s Charter that informs the public of the requirements,
procedures and forms for accessing public services and the rationalized process
time within which such services are obtained or completed. Agency Citizens
Charters are posted in the premises of agencies and in their websites.
6.
Implemented “We Serve OFWs Convergence Program” for a more concerted,
synchronized and coordinated delivery of services to OFWs, both in-country and
on-site, among agencies of the DOLE47. The programme focuses on four areas,
namely: capability-building for internal and external partners, education and
training for OFWs, setting up of 625 OFW Help Desks at local government units,
and provision of legal assistance.
(b) Allocating sufficient human and financial resources for agents within this structure to
carry out their work efficiently
6. The State party network of 83 embassies and consulates, 38 POLOs, and 20 Filipino
Workers Resource Centers serve the various needs of Filipinos before, during, and after
their employment abroad. Assistance-to-Nationals (ATN) units and the POLOs provide
24/7 on-site services.
7. State party agencies dealing with migrant worker protection, overseas employment,
and related migration issues were rationalized with regular staffing and adequate operating
funds.
46
The Presidential Task Force on Anti-Illegal Recruitment undertakes coordinated preventive and remedial
approaches to curb illegal recruitment at national and local levels. On the other hand, the Inter-Agency Council on
Anti-Human Trafficking jointly pursues capacity building, information dissemination programs, and enforcement
operations to fight human trafficking within the framework of the Anti-Trafficking Act.
47
82
DOLE Administrative Order No. 157 dated, April 2013.