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PR-2021-72

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PR-2021-70

29 November 2021, Toronto, Ontario –The Philippine Consulate General in Toronto, in cooperation with the Philippine Overseas Labour Office (POLO) Toronto, organized and conducted a Post-Arrival Orientation Seminar (PAOS) on Credentials Recognition and Settlement Services today, 26 November 2021 at 6:00 pm (Toronto/Ottawa time) via Zoom.

The PAOS was organized for Filipino nurses and other health workers based in Ontario to learn about the processes involved in planning their healthcare career, particularly in having their credentials and experience recognized by the Canadian Government, and the services available in Canada to provide support for this undertaking. It is also in line with the Philippine Embassy in Ottawa and Consulates General in Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary’s project on the accreditation of credentials of Filipino Canadian professionals in Canada, as well as with PCG Toronto’s Gender and Development campaign.

Philippine Ambassador to Canada H.E. Ambassador Rodolfo D. Robles was the Guest of Honor and was introduced by Consul General Orontes V. Castro. In his Welcome Remarks Ambassador Robles emphasized the importance of the PAOS in providing the needed information to Filipino professionals in Canada to help them settle in their second home and realize their full potential in their chosen field. He also highlighted the important contribution of Filipino professionals in Canada both in the development of Canada and the Philippines.

The resource persons for the program included Atty. Maria Deanna P. Santos, PhD, Barrister & Solicitor, and Notary Public at the Santos Law Office; Ms. Maria Concepcion (Connie) Manzo, Accreditation Facilitator with the Accreditation and Qualifications Information Services (AQIS) of the Welcome Centre Immigrant Services-York Region; and Mr. Rodolfo Lastimosa, Jr., a Registered Practical Nurse (Respirology and Gastroenterology Units) at the Humber River Hospital in Toronto and an elected Council Member for Central Toronto District of the College of Nurses of Ontario.
The topics discussed included the following: present policies and procedures on credentials recognition in Canada, present immigration policies of Canada that impact on credentials recognition, challenges to credential recognition for Filipino professionals, and available support programs from the federal and provincial governments of Canada to enable internationally trained nurses to have their credential recognized and work in the nursing field in Canada. Aside from credentials recognition, available settlement services, in terms of housing, childcare and other social assistance programs to help newly arrived workers/migrants were also discussed.

An Open Forum moderated by Ms. Catherine Dimalanta of POLO Toronto followed after the lectures of the three speakers.
The webinar was formally closed by Consul General Castro who thanked Ambassador Robles for spearheading the Credentials Recognition project, as well as everyone who attended the online event. He also thanked and presented Certificates of Appreciation to the resource speakers for the very informative and inspiring presentations.
The virtual PAOS was attended by around sixty-three (63) overseas Filipinos in Canada, not just from the health sector but also from other professions as well. – END

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PR-2021-71

03 December 2021, Toronto – The Philippine Consulate General in Toronto led by Consul General Orontes Castro, conducted a virtual seminar on the Roles of Filipino Women Through the Centuries.
<center><figure>
<img src="/http://philcongen-toronto.com/images/1685.jpg" alt="ROLE OF FILIPINO WOMEN" style="width:100%"> <figcaption align="justify" ><i>Dr. Nathalie Lourdes Africa-Verceles, Director of the UP Center for Women’s and Gender Studies gave a comprehensive talk on “Being Pinay: The Roles of Filipino Women Through the Centuries”, a virtual event organized by Sentro Rizal of the Philippine Consulate General in Toronto and held on 3 December 2021 via Zoom.</i></figcaption></figure></center>

The main speaker was Dr. Nathalie Africa-Verceles of the University of the Philippines Center for Women’s and Gender Studies (UPCWGS). Ambassador Rodolfo Robles of the Philippine Embassy in Ottawa gave the welcome remarks in which he emphasized on the leadership role that women presently hold in almost all fields of society. Dr. Maria Cynthia Rose Bautista of the University of the Philippines (UP) also gave brief remarks on the role of women and lauded the U.P. Center for Women’s and Gender Studies for its various programs to advance the status and welfare of Filipino women.

During her lecture, Dr. Verceles discussed the evolution of the role of Filipino women in Philippine society from the pre-colonial until the present times. She noted that Filipino women were equal and, in some cases, even occupying higher roles than men. However, with the arrival of the Spaniards, the role of Filipino women was relegated to the household. Nevertheless, Filipino women were able to re-establish their role in Philippine society through several turning points in Philippine history.

The seminar also had distinguished reactors, including Member of Parliament Salma Zahid and Member of Provincial Parliament Dolly Begum. MP Zahid and MPP Begum both shared their experiences as migrants in Canada and how as women they were able to overcome the challenges and play a leadership role initially in their communities, and later at the provincial and federal levels.

Ms. B. Lynne Milgram of the Ontario College of Art and Design (OCAD) University shared her studies on the involvement of Filipino women in alternative business enterprises which she noted is a good example how women are asserting themselves in society. Ms. Agnes Manasan of the University of the Philippines Alumni Association Toronto (UPAAT), for her part, noted that a new breed of Filipino-Canadian women is emerging as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Quincentennial Award was also presented by Consul General Castro to Dr. Verceles and Dr. Bautista at the end of the program for their advocacies in advancing and promoting the welfare and interest of Filipino women and their support to the Philippine Consulate General.

The webinar was moderated by Ms. Helen Chua Balderama of York University. Around 78 individuals attended the webinar, representing different Filipino-Canadian community organizations in Canada.

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PR-2021-69

29 November 2021, Toronto – The Philippine Consulate General in Toronto led by Consul General Orontes V. Castro joined the 18-day campaign to end violence against women (VAW) during its flag raising ceremony.

Consul General Castro gave a brief background on the 18-day campaign and the important role of women in society during the ceremony, which was participated in by clients for passport renewal, notarial and other consular services.

The Consulate General has lined up a number of activities to support the campaign to include webinars and other online activities.

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