2,000 overseas Filipinos in the Bahamas

The Bahamas – As early as 2018, shortly after I arrived in Washington, DC, we had been planning to present my credentials to countries in the Caribbean where I am also the ambassador. The first stop was supposed to be the Bahamas. Sidney Collie, who was the Bahamian ambassador to Washington, DC at the time, became a friend and colleague. He said he would be very pleased for that to take place early in my tenure.

Unfortunately, a lot of unprecedented events took place. Hence five years later, the long-planned event finally happened last Thursday in the Bahamian capital of Nassau where Governor-General Cornelius Smith received my credentials.

The Commonwealth of the Bahamas is a second home to close to 2,000 Filipinos who work in various sectors that include health services, household services, hospitality, accounting, education and ship repair, among several others. Just like in many countries all over the world, overseas Filipino workers in the Bahamas are highly appreciated and are much sought after. So much so that when some of them wish to retire, their Bahamian employers ask them to reconsider and offer more benefits just to make them stay longer.

Diplomatic relations between the Philippines and the Bahamas were established in July 1976 and so this year, we are celebrating 47 years of friendship that I am positive will be strengthened even further because of the close people-to-people ties between the two nations. Definitely, the presence of Filipino workers in the many islands in the Bahamas is an important engine for the future and strength of our bilateral relations.

In fact, Bahamian authorities have always been cooperative and helpful with the consular team of the Philippine embassy in Washington. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, they cooperated in addressing the concerns of OFWs who were affected by the border closures and recognized the manual extension of Philippine passports in order to legitimize the continued stay of Filipino workers and also for work permit renewals.

They also facilitated the transit of a group of OFWs from the British Virgin Islands whom we flew to Nassau to catch a British Airways airbridge flight from Cayman Islands to Manila, and assisted in repatriating additional distressed OFWs from the Bahamas who were able to join the airbridge flight.

When Hurricane Dorian hit the Bahamas in 2019, the Philippines gave a small contribution to help in the recovery efforts of the archipelagic nation. The small financial assistance was extremely appreciated by the Bahamian government, particularly since the impact of Dorian – described as a category 5 Atlantic hurricane and considered as the strongest ever to hit the Bahamas – was so devastating, with the damage estimated at $3.4 billion which, according to reports, was almost equal to a quarter of the GDP of the Bahamas.

The two nations share many things in common. Aside from being archipelagic states whose local economies rely heavily on tourism, agriculture, marine resources and coastal infrastructure, both countries are also very vulnerable to the destructive consequences of climate change and have also suffered a lot due to the grave impact of natural disasters.

Given our geographic similarities and the environmental challenges that both our nations face annually, we’re hoping to cooperate on climate change initiatives, disaster preparedness and mitigation, as well as environmental monitoring and research.

Aside from my presentation of credentials to Governor-General Smith, I also had a very important meeting with Prime Minister Philip Davis during which we discussed a wide range of issues that impact the world today. But one of the most significant parts of my mission to the Bahamas is to put forward a government-to-government memorandum of understanding (MOU) that would institutionalize the recruitment of Filipino workers through a bilateral labor cooperation framework.

The MOU would allow us to properly document and monitor the employment of Filipino workers and ensure their rights and welfare and, at the same time, prevent them from being victimized by illegal recruiters who still continue to operate all over the world – and unfortunately, the Bahamas is no exception. Generally, however, the Bahamas has been a good place for OFWs. While it has had its share of labor complaints and other issues such as irregular or illegal recruitment, there has been no widespread abuse or violence against Filipino workers.

During my trip to the Bahamas, I was extremely pleased to be with our honorary consul Dr. Leo Ignacio, whom I swore in during his recent visit to Washington. Dr. Ignacio was also an OFW and is now a very well-respected doctor in Nassau. He, together with Art Calleja who is a practicing Filipino nurse, organized a meet-and-greet with the Filipino community who were so gracious to welcome me. They made a special effort to see me even during a weekday, which we all know is a bit of a challenge for many of them. Nevertheless, I was absolutely pleased to meet all of them, and gave them my assurance that the Philippine embassy, and the Philippine government, especially President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., is out to protect every single Filipino working outside our country.

There is no arguing that OFWs play a major role in promoting good relations with other countries. As Brazilian Ambassador Claudio Raja Gabaglia Lins, who is also the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps in the Bahamas, told me when I met him, we are lucky to have “soft diplomacy” through our OFWs who create a lot of goodwill for our country.

Undoubtedly, Filipino overseas workers are indeed our best ambassadors wherever they may be – they are so much appreciated by their host countries.

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