Saudi Arabia is the preferred destination for Filipino expats Manila, Riyadh started talks in May on mass-hiring program for skilled workers MANILA: Philippine Migrant Workers Secretary Susan Ople has met a Saudi delegation from Takamol Holding in Manila to discuss collaboration on using technology to improve services for overseas Filipino workers in the Kingdom, the Department of Migrant Workers said on Tuesday. Hundreds of thousands of Filipinos are already working and living in Saudi Arabia — their preferred destination in the Middle East — making up nearly a quarter of all OFWs from the Southeast Asian country. The Saudi delegation from Takamol was led by the company’s Executive Vice President Fowzan Al-Muhaidib and held talks with Ople and other officials on Monday. They discussed “strengthening their partnership” and ways to “explore opportunities for collaboration on the use of technology for ease of doing business to improve service delivery to OFWs and their families,” the DMW said in a statement. Takamol, which operates under Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development, has led the launch of various skill verification programs for migrant workers in the Kingdom, including in Sri Lanka and India. Manila and Riyadh have started talks to launch a special mass-hiring program for skilled Filipino workers, Ople announced in late May, as the Philippines eyes more employment opportunities in Saudi Arabia under its Vision 2030 economic diversification plan. Ople said the program would focus on the tourism sector, a booming industry in the Kingdom, and could see 1 million jobs for skilled Filipinos. A delegation from the Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development is expected in Manila this month to continue talks on the program.