Dubai Labor Attaché Felicitas Bay said more than 500 Filipinos have been infected with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the United Arab Emirates, where there’s an estimated 800,000 to 1 million migrant workers from the Philippines.

In a virtual press briefing held by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Bay said that 79 out of 579 Filipinos who contracted COVID-19 have died due to various complications.

“Number of Filipinos affected…by the infection is 579. Of that 579, nasa 79 po ay namatay at iyan ay base sa civil registry ng ating Philippine consulate,” Bay said.

The labor official said that the government has extended financial assistance to over 100 Filipinos who have been infected with COVID-19.

“Yung 133 they sought the assistance of OWWA for cash assistance, may naibigay po ang ating OWWA-Dubai sa kanila na Dh730,” she said.

Meanwhile, around 375 Filipino COVID-19 cases in the UAE have been given cash assistance through the DOLE-AKAP program.

“375 individuals natulungan po natin sila po. They survived the illness at nabigyan ng ating financial assistance through our financial assistance program,” the labor attache added. “Maayos naman ang kalagayan namin dito. Ang ating mga kababayan, unti unti nang bumabalik sa kanilang mga trabaho.”

The total COVID-19 infections in the UAE stands at 120,710 of which 113,364 have recovered since.

The country has one of the highest recovery rate, 94 percent, in the world. It also has conducted more than 11 million COVID-19 test, so far, surpassing the number of its population.