After conflicts and several issues, recruitment agencies can now resume manpower pooling for Iraq under certain conditions. Acting Labor and Employment Secretary Manuel G. Imson has authorized on June 19, 2004 POEA to allow the recruitment agencies to continue the pooling activities for Iraq.

This decision was made after conferring with acting Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Jose Brillantes and Ambassador Roy A. Cimatu, chair of the Middle East Preparedness Committee on how the Philippines can help rebuild Iraq.

Cimatu and Brilliantes were also invited to discuss with the POEA and Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) short-term deployment strategies for Iraq, including the merit of allowing deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in selected areas, where security conditions are favorable.

As mentioned earlier, recruitment agencies in the Philippines must follow the conditions such as, only agencies with valid job orders may undertake manpower pooling, advertisements must clearly say that there will be no deployment yet, and no fees will be collected.

The Iraqi government’s prevailing deployment ban averts the processing of deployment of Filipino workers despite several job orders from the said country.

"We need to start manpower pooling and registration of workers in order not to delay mobilization schedules," Imson said.