Gov’t to offer construction jobs under ‘Build, Build, Build’ to returning OFWs

MANILA, Philippines — The government will offer construction jobs under its “Build, Build, Build” program to overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who have returned to the country, Malacañang announced Tuesday.

“At alam ko rin po, dahil nga mananatili pa rin ang Build, Build, Build initiative ng ating gobyerno, magkakaroon po tayo ng kumbaga job fair especially targeting the OFWs dahil kailangan po natin sila ngayong narito na sa ating bayan sila ‘no,” Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said in an online briefing.

(And I know, because our government’s Build, Build, Build initiative will remain, we will be having a so-called job fair especially targeting OFWs because we need them now that they are already here.)

Acting Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua earlier said they are reviewing projects that would be given priority under the infrastructure program in order to revive the economy from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases has earlier greenlighted some government projects under the Build, Build, Build program to resume construction.

Roque said among these were Harbor Link, NLEX-SLEX Connector, Cavite-Laguna Expressway, Skyway Stage 3, R1 Bridge Project, Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEx), and Subic Freeport Expressway.

At least 24,000 OFWs have been repatriated to the country as COVID-19 wreaks havoc on economies worldwide. According to the data of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), 11,848 of them have already returned to their respective hometowns.

The government said it is expecting the return of an additional 300,000 OFWs to the country this year due to the pandemic.

KGA