Qualifying examinations for Filipino engineers and other professionals employed in various Saudi companies will be increased to better prepare workers to tackle development projects in Saudi Arabia, according to an official of the Philippine Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) now visiting the Kingdom. “Licensing and certifying our overseas Filipino workers to enable them to improve their job performance and skills will be enhanced by giving them qualifying examinations right here in the Kingdom while they are deployed in Saudi Arabia,” said Alfredo Y. Po, Chairman of the Board of Mechanical Engineering, PRC. Po heads a team comprising Leandro A. Conti and Vicente B. Vosotros that is currently surveying the profile of Filipino engineers employed in various industries in Saudi Arabia. Filipino engineers are employed in key sectors, such as oil and gas, petrochemicals, power generation, prime industries, desalination plants, and industrial and commercial organizations. “Considering the importance of their jobs and contribution to the developmental targets of Saudi Arabia, we feel that our professionals, particularly our engineers, should be better qualified and prepared to meet the demands of Saudi industries as well as the inroads of global technology,” Po said. The qualifying examinations are held across the Kingdom. The first qualifying examinations were held in 2005 and 2007 for Filipino mechanical engineers, the first engineering discipline to be given such examinations. The last qualifying examination was held in July 2008, this time it included mechanical, civil, and electrical engineers, and architects. The next qualifying examination, scheduled for March, has been expanded to include mechanical, civil, electrical, and electronics engineering, architecture, and accountancy, according to an official of the Philippine Professional Organization (PPO), the association of various Filipino professional groups that is promoting the holding of qualifying examinations for Filipino professionals working in Saudi Arabia. A plan to hold qualifying examinations for Filipino teachers employed in Filipino schools, as well as international educational institutions, was discussed during a series of meeting between officials of Filipino schools and a delegation of officials from the Philippine Department of Education (DepEd). The DepEd delegation is holding a series of meetings with teachers of Filipino schools in the Eastern Province. Babano said a proposal to hold qualifying examinations for Filipino teachers who are employed in the Kingdom is now under consideration.
