Commission on Filipinos Overseas to set up office in Baguio

BAGUIO CITY: Filipino nationals who have migrated overseas have somebody to continue to link them to the Philippines, especially when in distress. Janet Ramos, Supervising Immigrant Services Officer of the Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO), in a press conference Tuesday night, said they would open first week of August a satellite office in this city to cater to Filipinos in Northern Luzon. This will be its third office after those in Cebu, serving the Visayas, and Davao, for Mindanao. "We urge those who are migrating overseas to register with us so that they can be reached by our government for the policies that concern them and they too can reach out (to) government,' she said. The CFO provides pre-departure orientation and one-on-one or group counseling to those who have already received a visa but have yet to leave the country. Its database shows that about 2.53 million Filipinos hold immigrant visas, permanent resident visas, and other types of visas that lead to foreign citizenship. The figure covers only those who migrated overseas from the Philippines and excludes those who obtained their immigrant, resident, or fiancé/fiancée visa while staying in a foreign country. Ramos said at least 35 percent of the immigrants who listed with the CFO are from northern Luzon, mostly from the Ilocos region. She said most Filipinos migrate to the United States, Japan, Australia, South Korea, Canada, and Britain. Source: Philippines News agency