The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) governing board stated in three separate resolutions that the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (0FWs) to Iraq, Yemen and Eretria is now allowed. This is the announcement made by the Department of Labor and Employment Secretary (DOLE), Rosalinda Baldoz.

The Labor Secretary said in a press statement, “The Department of Foreign Affairs has included Iraq in the list of compliant countries under Republic Act 10022, effectively lifting the five-year old ban to the said country."

The Philippines decided to impose a total deployment of OFWs to Iraq on December 2007 because of the unstable peace and order situation there.

The Crisis Alert Level in Iraq was lowered to Level 1 (Precautionary Phase) by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) with mandatory travel restriction to "no-go" zones to be determined by the host country. This announcement was stated by the DFA in a letter dated February 6, 2013.

Likewise, a letter dated February 4, 2013 sent by the Philippine Embassy in Baghdad to Baldoz certifies Iraq as a compliant country with the guarantees of the law.

The deployment ban for rehires or returning workers was lifted after the Iraqui government submitted the list of areas identified as “no-go" zones. The processing of applications for newly hired (except HSWs) will resume upon the conclusion of a Bilateral Labor Agreement with Iraq and the identification of the restricted zones."

Baldoz said, "I have instructed POEA Administrator Hans Leo J. Cacdac to fast track the guidelines on the resumption of deployment of OFWs to Iraq."

Meanwhile OFWs can now be deployed in Yemen since the DFA lowered its Alert Level from  2 to Alert Level 1 last January. The deployment ban in Yemen started in February 2011 because of unstable political and security conditions in that country.

The POEA Board also allowed the deployment of OFWs in Eritrea because of a certification issued by the DFA on December 21, 2012, that included it in the list of compliant countries.