Kuwait’s decision to halt visa issuance to Filipino workers has raised concerns about potential financial losses for the Philippines. Official figures reveal that the volume of remittances from Filipino workers in Kuwait amounted to approximately $600 million annually. This marks a 3.7 percent increase in 2022, contributing 1.8 percent to the total remittances of Filipinos abroad, which amounted to about $32.54 billion, reports Al-Rai Daily.
The Manila Standard website reported that remittances from Kuwait had declined during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, reaching $580 million in 2020 and $576 million in 2021, following a record high of $856 million in 2016. However, the overall remittances from Filipinos abroad increased by 3.6 percent in 2022, primarily driven by the continuous demand for skilled Filipino workers overseas. Despite the increase, this growth fell short of the Central Bank of the Philippines’ target of 4%.
The largest contributions to the rise in remittances were from the United States, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Qatar, and the United Kingdom. The United States stood as the top source of remittances, followed by Singapore and Saudi Arabia. Remittances from Filipinos abroad consistently rank as the world’s fourth-largest, trailing behind India, China, and Mexico.
The Philippine government has asserted that it did not violate the bilateral labor agreement signed with Kuwait in 2018, which guarantees the establishment of shelters for Filipino workers. Assistant Secretary of State Paul Curtis stated that the embassy in Kuwait has the right to operate shelters within its headquarters, as permitted by the agreement. However, the Kuwaiti government has not officially communicated any violations, although reports suggest that Kuwait aims to remove shelters for runaway domestic workers due to legal restrictions.
In response to the situation, a Philippine delegation consisting of officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Migrant Workers is scheduled to visit Kuwait in May to address the issue and clarify the alleged violations. The Philippine government is currently evaluating the possibility of lifting the ban on sending workers to Kuwait, which has been in effect since February.
