POEA Administrator Cacdac, Mr. Johnson, friends from government, civil society and private sector, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. Good morning to all of you!

I am very pleased to be with you today for the launch of the ILO Project on "Promoting Decent Work Across Borders: A Project for Migrant Health Professionals and Skilled Workers" and the first Project Advisory Committee meeting.

First of all, I would like to congratulate ILO for organising this meeting and for getting all the relevant Philippine stakeholders on-board for this project. Certainly, the participation of all concerned sectors is very crucial for the success of this project. I am therefore very glad to see today the representatives from government, labour unions, professional groups and private sector who have joined hands to implement this important project in the Philippines.

The EU counts ILO as a key international partner in putting into action a migrant-centered, human rights-based approach to labour migration and shares ILO's commitment to pursue the Decent Work for All Agenda. I am therefore confident that this project, which the EU fully supports with a EUR 2 million grant, will help improve the lives of migrant workers, in particular the health professionals. The project aims to address the current issues related to the outflow of health professionals from Vietnam, India and the Philippines through the "circular migration approach".