The Philippines is seeking to sign a bilateral agreement with France that aims to legalize the stay of undocumented Filipinos in the European country.
“Maganda naman ang kalagayan ng ating mga kababayan dito. And we’ve been monitoring them and hopefully magkaroon tayo ng certain agreement in the coming year, probably next year in terms of migration and this is something na pinag-uusapan pa (Our countrymen here (France) are doing fine. And we’ve been monitoring them and, hopefully, we could have an agreement next year on terms of migration; something that is being discussed),” Philippine Ambassador to France Ma. Theresa Lazaro was quoted as saying in a Manila Bulletin report.
Lazaro admitted that some of the Filipinos in France have immigrated to the country illegally while most are in the process of legalizing their status.
More than 20,000 Filipinos are living in France. Half of their population live in the Paris, the capital of France while the rest are located in the southern part of the country.
Despite the illegal status of some Filipinos in France, they hold stable jobs and are treated well by the French, Lazaro said.
Aside from the migration agreement the Philippines is hoping to sign with France, the former also seeks to enhance trade and tourism ties with the European country.
The two countries have recently signed an agreement to increase direct flights from Manila to Paris. However, the agreement could not be implemented due to low number of passengers.
“With the direct flights, we can improve our tourism number since at this point the French people are looking at the Philippines in terms of diving spots and of course our beaches are excellent beaches,” Lazaro said in the same report.
The Philippines is hoping for the full implementation of the tourism agreement.