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Three multinational companies engaged in large development projects in Algeria need some 7,050 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to work for them, a Libya-based labor attaché said Friday in a statement. According to a report by Labor Attaché Nasse Mustafa, the three firms—Daewoo E&C of Korea, the COJAAL consortium of Japan and SNC Lavalin of Canada—prefer to employ Filipinos. And those firms need more than 7,000 highly skilled workers to work in road and infrastructure projects in Algeria, a country in northern Africa. Daewoo E&C of Korea would need some 5,650 highly skilled OFWs like engineers, electricians, pipe fitters, welders, carpenters and masons for a $569.3-million new Algerian oasis city project. Meanwhile, the COJAAL consortium, which now employs 2,150 Filipinos, would need 600 more OFWs for road projects in Annaba, also in Algeria. The consortium includes companies like Kajima, Taichi, Nishimachu, Hajama and Itochu. Responsible for the renovation of the Benghazi International Airport in Libya, the SNC Lavalin also said it would be employing 800 OFWs for the construction of a water dam. Labor department The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) in Manila confirmed that demand for Filipino workers in Algeria is expected to rise in several sectors—infrastructure, energy, agriculture and other ongoing developments in that country. Labor Secretary Marianito Roque said in a statement that Algerian employers prefer the skills and knowledge of Filipino workers particularly in sectors that include field works and assignments. He also cited a report by the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in Tripoli, Libya, that also said Algerians like Filipino workers. The Philippine embassy in Libya, along with all the government officers posted there, also looks after Algeria. Based on records, Algeria now employs 2,697 OFWs. The Labor department statement said, “. . . The impressive economic developments in Algeria are complemented by the successful reduction of its external debt to the Paris and London Clubs, the strength of its oil and gas sectors, as well as the construction of flourishing new cities in the desert.” Mustafa said that despite the nationalization policy of Algeria, more skilled Filipino workers are still preferred by its business sector, which has considerably given OFWs a niche in the social strata and an opportunity to contribute to the country’s development and its rising population and economy. He added that the continuous demand for OFWs in countries like Algeria signified the global competitiveness of Filipino workers amid the financial crisis that has threatened world economies.
-- Bernice Camille V. Bauzon | 