MANILA: The Philippines and the Gulf Cooperation Council are in talks to open more accredited medical centers and clinics in the Southeast Asian country, as they seek to improve health screening for Filipino workers headed for the Gulf.
More than a million Filipino nationals are living and working in the Gulf region. Saudi Arabia is the top destination in the GCC for Filipino overseas workers — the Kingdom hosts nearly half of the Filipinos in the Gulf — followed by the UAE, Kuwait and Qatar.
This week, the Philippines’ Department of Migrant Workers hosted a delegation from the GCC and the Gulf Health Council to discuss initiatives on the health and medical screening of Filipino migrant workers.
The GHC runs the Wafid Program, a mandatory pre-departure medical screening for Gulf-bound expatriates to ensure they are fit and free from certain diseases that could pose public health risks.
“As of now, there are 24 accredited medical centers and clinics across the country, and the council announced plans to expand and increase that number,” the DMW said in a statement issued after the meeting.
The addition of such clinics would ensure better access for Gulf-bound Filipino migrant workers, especially those who live in more remote areas, said Lito Soriano, executive director of the Recruitment Industry Crisis Coordination Council, who described the plan as a “positive development.”
Formed in March 2026, the RICCC is a coalition of Philippine recruitment agencies and industry organizations whose work focuses on protecting overseas Filipino workers during emergencies, particularly in the Middle East.
“There are about three medical clinics that are Manila-based but have branches in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, but that is not enough,” Soriano told Arab News on Saturday. “This will make things easier for overseas workers (from remote) areas because they don’t have to travel far to have their medical examinations.”
The RICCC is also advocating for government-managed hospitals to offer medical examinations that comply with standards set by the health ministries across the Gulf.
“One of the pathways is to encourage the 24 currently accredited centers to open branches in the provinces, accredited by the Department of Health and the Gulf health ministries,” Soriano said. “Second is to provide more examination access for overseas workers. The government should participate through regional and provincial hospitals so the centers will be closer to the applicants.”
