UAE hailed for making ‘Abu Dhabi Dialogue’ a success

Benigno S. Aquino, President of the Republic of the Philippines opened today the second consultative ministerial meeting of the Abu Dhabi Dialogue II at the International Convention Center in Manila.

UAE Minister of Labour Saqr Ghobash, along with Labour Ministers of the GCC countries were present at the opening ceremony which was also attended by Mousa Abdul Wahid Abdul Ghaffar Al Khaja, UAE Ambassador to the Philippine and UAE delegation.

The event is attended by 14 ministers and a number of senior officials from the Governments of the concerned States, including the GCC. Philippines Vice President Jejomar Binay was also present among the attendees.

Addressing the opening session President Benigno said: ‘ Abu Dhabi Dialogue 2 is of great significance to the state due to the his country’s keenness in cooperating with the UAE to establish permanent and solid basis to Abu Dhabi Dialogue for the benefits of both sides.’

He also hailed UAE’s efforts for making the event a great success and passing over the presidency of Abu Dhabi Dialogue to Philippines until 2014.

He stressed that his country is proud of the establishment of the permanent headquarters of ‘Abu Dhabi Dialogue’ in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi.

‘We strive with our friends in the Gulf States to find better job opportunities and stable living conditions of the Philippine labor to improve our economic condition’, the president concluded.

In his speech before the meeting, UAE’s Minister of Labour stressed the state keenness to continue the process of ‘Abu Dhabi Dialogue’ to achieve its goals.

He also hailed the efforts of Philippines President Benigno and other senior officials including Rosalinda Baldoz, Secretary Philippines Department of Labor and Employment and Danilo Cruz, Undersecretary of the department in making the event a success with the help of UAE’s Ministry of Labour.

Here is the full text of Saqr Ghobash’s speech:

His Excellency President Benigno S. Aquino of the Republic of the Philippines

Honorable Jejomar Binay, Vice President of the Republic of the Philippines

Honorable Danilo Cruz, Undersecretary, the Philippines Department of Labor and Employment

Your Excellencies Ministers and Heads of Delegations to the Second Abu Dhabi Dialogue Ministerial Consultation,

Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I wish to express my sincere gratitude to the Government of the friendly Republic of the Philippines for hosting this important event. This is testament to the Philippines’ ongoing commitment to the welfare of Filipino nationals overseas and to close cooperation with labor receiving countries in looking after the interests of its expatriate citizens and facilitating their return to the Philippines at the end of their overseas employment journey.

I am honored to take this opportunity to relay to the government of the Philippines that the UAE leadership and our government note with great satisfaction the special and growing relation that brings our two countries together, and our increasing bilateral cooperation, notably in the field of manpower. Filipino workers, technicians and skilled professionals have historically contributed, and continue to contribute to the economic and social development of the UAE, while they, at the same time, succeed in making a unique contribution to their country’s own economy and improve their living conditions and those of their families and loved ones in the process.

Let me also thank you for the warm and generous hospitality that was accorded to me personally by the Philippines’ Department of Labor and Employment and members of the organizing committee, and pay tribute to the fine organizational skills and the professional dedication of the DOLE team.

Excellencies, distinguished participants,

It is befitting that the Philippines stepped forward to host the second Abu Dhabi Dialogue among Asian Countries of Origin and Destination in Manila, and to chair the ADD Process during the next two years. The Philippines has historically been in the lead among nations when it comes to engagement and participation in regional and international fora that address issues and challenges of labor migration. These include issues and challenges that are associated with the temporary contract employment of a large number Filipino nationals in Asia, notably in the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council. The goal that the Philippines has traditionally sought to accomplish by participating in such fora and dialogues was to foster consensus and collaboration among countries of origin and destination, fully recognizing that cooperation on the basis of mutual respect of the rights and interests of all concerned stakeholders was key to ensuring that its overseas workers are successful in fulfilling their human development and improving their and their families’ quality of life, and that they return to their home communities and are successfully reintegrated. During the four years the UAE chaired the Abu Dhabi Dialogue, the Philippines was consistently engaged in the implementation of the recommendations of the first Ministerial Consultation and actively participated in pilot projects and programs the outcomes of which were documented in the Technical Report that was approved by the meeting of our Senior Officials on Tuesday, and formed the basis for drafting the Framework of Regional Cooperation that is submitted for our consideration during the course of today.

Our partnership with the Philippines proved to be an example of cooperation among countries of origin and destination, and I trust that it will inspire broader collaboration among Abu Dhabi Dialogue governments over the next two years to implement the fine recommendations that are laid out in the draft Framework, thus achieving a qualitative leap for our regional partnership. We have a clear opportunity to benefit from the Philippines stewardship of the Abu Dhabi Dialogue in forging new partnerships centreed on a series of new and vitally important programs that stand to improve the developmental outcomes of contract employment for workers, their employers, countries of origin and countries of destination. I refer, in particular, to the draft Framework’s recommended joint action in the areas of skill development, recognition and certification across the phases of the contract employment cycle, from pre-employment and pre-deployment, to residency in the country of destination, to return and re-integration in the home community; I also refer to the development of robust labor market information systems that can be leveraged in efficient job-matching, the design and deployment of electronic contract registration and validation systems and to acting to incentivize the compliance of private recruitment agencies with the law and strengthen government regulation and oversight of their activities.

Moreover, we are called upon to complete the formulation of the terms of reference and operating modalities of the Abu Dhabi Dialogue process which, as correctly recommended to us by our Senior Officials, requires additional consultation among member governments in order to arrive at a set of sound and effective modalities that we can consider for adoption at our next Ministerial Consultation in 2014.

Excellencies,

As the UAE formally turns over the presidency of the Abu Dhabi Dialogue to the able leadership of the Philippines, we will remain committed to doing what we can to support the new Chair in its endeavor. In this respect, the UAE has agreed to establish a permanent site and support structure for the Abu Dhabi Dialogue in our capital city of Abu Dhabi, and shoulder the cost of its establishment and operation.

In closing, I would like to reiterate the UAE’s sincere thanks to the government of the Philippines for assuming the responsibility of organizing the Abu Dhabi Dialogue meetings, and wish Your Excellencies, attending ministers and heads of delegation, a very successful meeting.

May God bless you.