Phl, Sudan talk on overstaying Pinoys

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines has raised with Sudan the situation of overstaying Filipino nationals who are having difficulty securing exit permits from the Sudanese immigration officials due to overstaying fees, an embassy report said.

Citing a report of the Philippine embassy in Cairo, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said yesterday the Sudanese government promised to look deeper into the case to resolve the issue.

The DFA said Charge d’Affaires Alex Lamadrid met with officials of Sudan’s Foreign Ministry, International Organization for Migration (IOM) officials, Philippine Honorary Consul in Khartoum Tarig El Nefeidi, and the Filipino community in Sudan from Dec. 15 to 17.

Last year, the embassy secured a waiver of fees from the Sudanese Immigration for 48 overstaying Filipinos.

During the meeting with IOM officials, Lamadrid sought their assistance in the repatriation Filipino nationals who might be victims of human trafficking. The IOM committed to inform the embassy of its any new programs which the Filipino nationals can avail themselves of by next year.

At a dinner hosted by El Nefeidi, Lamadrid expressed his appreciation for the Philippine Honorary Consul’s continued support to the Filipino nationals in Sudan as well as further strengthening bilateral relations. El Nefeidi played an important role in the repatriation of some 30 overstaying Filipinos last year.

There are some 3,000 Filipinos in Sudan who work as nurses, medical professionals, engineers, office workers, technicians, students, and domestic workers or are married to Sudanese nationals.