The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Director Maria Cleofe R. Natividad said that there are market openings in European countries for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). The said opportunities are not only for domestic helpers and health workers but as well as in other fields.

“Although the policy of the government is not really to export our services, but since there are market openings in Europe, we want to take advantage of this in as much as it helps the Philippine economy,” Director Natividad said.

The DFA director also said that their agency is trying to upgrade the export of the country’s services abroad especially for professionals. She also gave assurance that the OFWs will be given enough protection.

“We want to assure them that there will be adequate protection when they go there like adequate compensation and opportunity for them to go higher in the hierarchy of their respective careers,” she said.

Natividad added that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo guarantees that OFWs will be given enough protection as well as opportunities during her visit in the European countries.

Europe is next to Saudi Arabia and United States as top source of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) remittances.  There are about 500,000 Filipinos working in Europe.