22 March 2015, Tel Aviv, State of Israel - The Philippine Embassy in Israel, together with the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) and Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) and in cooperation with the Filipino Overseas Workers Welfare Association (FOWWA) based in Haifa, conducted a successful consular outreach mission and overseas voting registration at the St. Joseph Latin Parish Church in Haifa on 21 March 2015. A total of 185 Filipinos availed of various consular services including 86 new overseas voting (OV) registrations.

The Philippine Embassy team, headed by Consul Bryan Jess Baguio, Labor Attaché Rodolfo Gabasan and OWWA Welfare Office Alice Lim, rendered passport processing / releasing services, notarials, Embassy ID registration, overseas voting registration, OEC processing and OWWA renewal services for the members of the Filipino community in Haifa and its neighboring cities.

The Embassy has included the OV registration as an integral part of all its consular missions in the different major cities in Israel to give overseas Filipinos the opportunity to participate in the 2016 national elections.

The city of Haifa, located in northern Israel, is a major seaport and tourists destination. It serves as host to one of the largest number of Filipino workers in Israel, mostly belonging to the caregiving sector, besides Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. The city is also well-known for being the site of the world famous Bahá'í Gardens. END