Soon, 8 new DFA offices abroad

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines will open this year five embassies in Europe and three consulates in China to strengthen diplomatic relations with foreign countries and serve the consular needs of the growing number of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), the Department of Foreign Affairs said.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Administration Franklin Ebdalin said embassies will be opened in Portugal, Ireland, Finland, Poland and Syria. Consulates will also be opened in Macau, Chongqing and Chengdu in China.

“There is already a budget for the opening of new embassies. It will be opened anytime this year,” Ebdalin said.

He said the Philippines needs to open an embassy in Damascus because Syria is being used as a transit point for Filipinos in times of crisis in the Middle East, particularly in Lebanon.

The Philippines has 62 embassies, three permanent missions to the United Nations, one permanent mission to the World Trade Organization and 21 consulates general.

Last month, the Philippines opened a new diplomatic mission in Barcelona, Spain to serve an estimated 20,000 Filipinos in the Catalonian region and the thousands of Filipino seamen passing though its vital and busy international port city.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo formally inaugurated the Philippine Consulate General in Barcelona that also serves to promote the Philippines’ political and trade interests. Consul General Eduardo Jose de Vega, a career foreign service officer, heads it. – Pia Lee-Brago