Filipinos in Bahrain
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 40,000[1] (2012) | |
| Languages | |
| Filipino or other languages of the Philippines, English and Arabic | |
| Religion | |
| Roman Catholicism or other Christian denominations, Islam | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Filipino people, Overseas Filipinos |
Filipinos in Bahrain are either migrants or descendants of the Philippines living in Bahrain. As of 2012, there are approximately 40,000 of these Filipinos in Bahrain.[1]
Bahrain is the eighth largest destination for Filipino domestic workers hired or rehired from 2006 to 2011, and has 21,254 documented overseas Filipino domestic workers as of July 2012.[2] In addition, Filipinos in Bahrain commonly work as accountants, construction contractors, engineers, sales associates, as well as business and government support staff.[1][3] In March 2011, the Philippine government implemented a "deployment ban" on hiring Filipinos in Bahrain due to the Bahraini uprising as a part of the Arab Spring, allowing existing Filipino employees to continue working in Bahrain while preventing new workers from entering the nation, but this ban was lifted several months later that year.[1][4][5] Filipinos working in Bahrain remitted US$151.82 million from January to November 2012, about 7 per cent more than in the same period in 2011. As per November 2012, Filipinos now account for 10 per cent of Bahrain's population, working mostly as hotel, restaurant and mall employees.[6]
Bahrain is a source of remittances sent back to the Philippines, with roughly US$155 million officially sent back in 2011 and a peak of US$166.2 million sent back in 2009.[7] Six Filipino banks have correspondent accounts with banks in Bahrain to allow for remittance transfers.[8]
