The Philippines is asking its workers abroad to delay their return to the nation, as coronavirus infections remain elevated and funds for quarantine hotels run low.
The budget for returning migrant workers’ isolation facilities will be used up by next month, said Overseas Workers Welfare Administration head Hans Candace, who advised Filipinos to postpone non-essential trips back home.
“It’s also for their protection. We still have a surge in cases,” Cacdac said at a virtual briefing Wednesday. The government is finding ways to address the fund shortage, he said.
The Philippines has the highest number of active coronavirus cases in the region, with the surge in infections overwhelming hospitals and dimming economic outlook.
The government has repatriated more than 500,000 displaced migrant workers amid the pandemic, labour department data show.
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