Dh730 cash aid for Filipinos in UAE continues in December

  DUBAI – The Philippine government’s Dh730 cash aid disbursement for Filipinos in the UAE who lost their jobs or income during the Covid-19 crisis continued on Sunday (December 6). A source told Expatmedia.net that many of those who received cash assistance in December sent their applications in late April, when offices of the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in the UAE were inundated with tens of thousands of applications. Melanie (name withheld) received an email from POLO Dubai on Wednesday with a note to personally claim her cash assistance at the agency’s office in Al Ghusais on Thursday (December 10). “Ang iyong DOLE-AKAP One-Time Financial Assistance application ay APRUBADO (Your DOLE-AKAP One-Time Financial Assistance application is approved),” the message read. Melanie, who was put on unpaid leave at the height of the coronavirus pandemic, said she sent her application on April 24. “This came as a nice surprise. I will be sharing the money to buy essentials for a friend who recently lost his job,” Melanie told Expatmedia.net. “I am grateful to the Philippine government and our officials here in the UAE who have worked to make this happen for OFWs,” she said, urging those still waiting for cash aid “to be patient. If you are qualified, you will surely get it”. The DOLE AKAP program is a one-time cash assistance for Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who lost their job or part of their salary due to the economic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. The program was launched by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on April 8. According to DOLE, the DOLE AKAP program received a total of 683,369 applications as of November 28, with a total of 338,900 distressed Filipinos in the Middle East and around the world getting cash aid. A source said that at POLO Dubai, more than 40,000 applications were received in April alone, but that the agency’s budget allocation could only allow disbursement of cash aid for 21,500 applicants as of October. The figure is expected to double after Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte approved, in late October, the release of additional funding of P5.1 billion for the DOLE AKAP program. The additional funding is aimed at giving 200,000 more OFWs cash aid of Dh730 ($200).

How to apply for DOLE AKAP cash aid

According to DOLE, all new applications for DOLE AKAP will be accepted through the website oasis.owwa.gov.ph for displaced OFWs who are scheduled for repatriation. This will allow the offices of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration to process and evaluate the applications in advance. For stranded OFWs and seafarers whose deployment were suspended due to Covid-19 as well as those who have been and will be repatriated before November 30, applications must still be filed through dole-akap.owwa.gov.ph. Displaced OFWs who will remain abroad may file their application through the POLO offices covering their workplace. Details here ICA/Expat Media
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