MANILA – Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. on Thursday said Bahrain is donating 240,000 doses of vaccine to the Philippines.

The pledge was made during his phone call with Bahrain Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al-Zayani on April 13.

The DFA said about 40,000 of the total donation would be Pfizer doses for the pediatric population.

In the same call, the two officials also talked about the possible establishment of an Embassy of Bahrain in the Philippines in view of growing bilateral ties, largely driven by the vital contributions of the Filipino community to Bahraini society.

“During the call, the two Ministers discussed the friendly relations between the two friendly countries, and ways to promote the distinguished bilateral relations between the two countries and further develop them in order to achieve mutual benefits, in addition to a number of regional and international issues of common interest,” Bahrain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

Relations between the Philippines and Bahrain have been cordial.

Currently, 15 agreements and memorandum of understanding (MOUs) had been signed between the two nations in air services, manpower recruitment, investments, taxation, tourism, education, health services, development assistance, agriculture, and industry, among others.

In the labor sector, the Bahraini government likewise continues to allow the hosting of Filipino workers in the Kingdom and has implemented programs and labor reforms beneficial to the Filipino community — among them the “flexi visa system” that allows migrants to work as freelancers there.

Based on government data as of 2020, there are approximately 50,000 Filipinos in Bahrain. (PNA)